Upside Down
by tehsecretardor
Summary: At the age of sixteen, Haru Glory goes from farmer to Prince, engaged to the beautiful Princess Celia. But, after meeting a poor girl, he finds himself more in love than he ever was. Unfortunately, for him another Prince has his sight set on this girl. AU
1. Chapter 1: The Truth?

Upside Down

~x~

Summary: At the age of sixteen, Haru Glory goes from farmer to Prince, engaged to the beautiful Princess Celia. But, after meeting a poor girl, he finds himself more in love than he ever was. Unfortunately, another Prince has his sight set on this girl, and will do everything to obtain her – even kill.

~x~

Author's Note: I'M SO SORRY FOR TAKING DOWN _If I Fall_!!!!!!!!! I truly, sincerely am! It was going in a direction I had wanted it, and then I lost interest…T~T I'm so sorry…please don't hate me. Dx  
On a better note, this one's been all planned out, so if I lose interest than I don't think I'll be fit to call myself a writer anymore. =D

Oh, by the way, I meant to throw this in the next chapter of _If I Fall_, but…well, you know…  
I think I have a problem – my friend and I were talking about the Pokémon games Diamond and Pearl, and since I have Pearl Version, I started to play. Well, when I got my starter Pokémon (the water one – Piplup) I decided to name it Haru. Well, that sparked a desire to make all six of my main Pokémon named after the Rave Warriors. Anyways, after deciding that, I went and caught myself a Starly, which is a bird Pokémon, and named him Let because…well, I didn't want to wait so long in the game to catch a dragon type for him. Next, I went to the liberty of catching an electric Pokémon (a Shinx) and named him Musica because he gets REALLY strong as he evolves. Next, I found this water type called a Buizel and since it was a girl, I named her Julia! Next, I plan to catch a Pichu and name her Elie, and some fire type and name it Shuda (this one is still undergoing which Pokémon.)  
I have included a site at the bottom the chapter that you can view all these Pokémon. 8D

I know that's long, and you don't really have to read it. Just a little side-info about yours truly.

Disclaimer: I own no character from Rave nor any Pokémon. Just several of their products.

~x~

**Chapter One: The Truth?**

"S-sir, what do you mean?" a tall man asked, backing away from the man he had been talking to in shock. "Sir Alpine, you can't possibly mean what you've just said. King Gale never married!"

The man he was talking to stared back at him, his light eyes narrowed, "I meant every word, Soldier. While His Highness indeed never married, it would appear that he had begun a family with a farmers' orphaned daughter; a young lady by the name of Sakura. It would also appear," he continued, holding up one hand to stop an interruption, "that he and Sakura had produced two children together – a young girl by the name of Cattleya, and a young man several years later by the name of Haru. Unfortunately, during the King's absence, both Sakura and Cattleya suffered from the disease, leaving young Haru on his own."

The crowd around him fell silent. "Alpine, why would King Gale neglect to tell his own _country_ about this little family of his?" a young girl asked, her black hair framing her tanned face. Next to her, two other men nodded in agreement, obviously at a loss for words. "It's heartbreaking enough to learn of his death, but to not even know of our own King's lover and two children…unforgiveable. We are not fit to call ourselves Knights of the Symphonian Army!"

"Now is not the time to reprimand ourselves, Clea," one of the other men said calmly, his long pipe hanging from his mouth, "We need to find this unknown Prince, and quickly; the villagers have caught wind of the King's death, and questions of his heir are floating around. If we do not act soon, a revolt may very well happen."

Immediately, the crowd around them called out in agreement. "Very well," Alpine said softly, turning to his friends, "Dalmatian, can you take your troops to the northern part of town? Check each farm you meet, and find the boy Haru."

"It will be my honor," he replied immediately, gesturing for a fourth of the troops around to follow him.

Alpine waited several minutes for them to leave before turning to the other man; a large man with hair the color of copper and eyes that were kind and yet intimidating. "Deerhound, I trust you to the southern part of the land. The people there trust you, do they not?"

"'Course they do! Don't you worry, Alpine; we'll find this Haru kid!" Deerhound cried, grinning cheerfully at the green haired man. "Oy, all troops under my command, let's get rolling!" Another forth of the soldiers followed him out, looking rather weary.

Clea bowed to him, clenching her fists tightly, "Alpine, if it pleases you, may I take my troops and head to the eastern front? My daughter's ill, and I was hoping to visit her for the remainder of her pregnancy." Alpine bowed his head, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Of course, Clea. When you have finished your search, send a messenger back to the castle with your results and come back as soon as your grandchild has been born and nursed to health," he granted softly. The woman nodded, smiling gratefully at him and gesturing for her own fourth of the troops to follow behind her. Alpine turned to a man with jet black hair and dark green eyes, leaning against a wall some feet away, "I am astounded at you Shiba – you have remained silent. What's on your mind?"

The man shrugged, looking away, "Maybe this kid doesn't want to be found," he pointed out briskly, "You ever think of that, Alpine?"

Alpine's eyes narrowed. "No man would turn down the opportunity of royal blood, Shiba. I'm entrusting the western lands. There are few farmers that still live there, which is why I'm asking you to go there. The farmers there are less trustworthy of the government due to attacks from the Raregrooves half a century ago, and won't take too kindly if a soldier were to appear at their door," he explained, sighing.

"What, do you want me to do? Lie to those people and disguise myself?" Shiba asked, pushing off the wall. Alpine bowed his head, and the younger one's mouth dropped, "A-alright, if that's what you want. I'll do my best to find this Haru kid!" he cried, grinning at him as he ran out.

Alpine watched him go, gesturing for the remaining soldiers to return to their stations. "You are our only hope, Haru Glory-Symphonia. Please, do not let us down," he said softly, taking one last look at the empty spaces that held his friends before turning on his heel and heading into the castle.

~*~

Miles away, sweat was dripping from nearly every pore from his tanned body, but Haru Glory refused to stop until all of the soil was tilled. It was rough work, tilling soil, and by far the young man's least favorite farm chore. But, it had to be done; he needed the money the produce would eventually earn him. Though, he had to admit, he was much better off than some of his fellow farmers – Shige was several hundred Edels in debt because of a drought he had been unable to fight.

While he disliked having to work so hard day-in, day-out, Haru had to admit that he was good at what he did. His produce was exceptionally large, and the villagers told him each day he was out there selling that it tasted far better than the others. He was modest, and simply thanked them and promised to bring in more next time he was there.

Finally, the man brought the hoe up from the soil, grinning at his work – now for the easy part; planting. Whistling, he slung the hoe across his shoulders, heading back across his field to his shed to grab the seeds. Briefly, he glanced up at the sun and sighed – there would be no time for him to make it into town to catch the crowds before suppertime. As if the mere thought of food had made him hungry, his stomach growled loudly against his patched tunic. Laughing, the man pushed the door of his shed open and placed his hoe on the rack, grabbing the large packet of seeds.

With tired arms that were still sweating, Haru lugged the bundle over the newly tilled seeds, ripping open the top and grabbing a handful. Cheerfully, he tossed the seeds onto the soil, moving around his field slowly to make sure that enough seeds landed in the right place. When he was done, the bundle was completely empty, and he was even sorer than he had been before he started planting. Sighing, he dragged himself into his tiny little house several feet away from his shed, sitting down in a chair and rubbing his sore arms.

"I need a helper or something…" he muttered, groaning as he picked himself off the chair and went to the washroom to get rid of all the sweat on his body before he ate; an old rule of his mother's before she passed away along with his older sister due to some disease.

That had been when he was ten. He was sixteen now.

Silently, he washed himself off and went to the icebox, pulling out a small bottle of milk and one slab of meat, lighting a fire. It wasn't the life his mom had wanted for him, he knew, but it was one he enjoyed.

Several minutes passed until he finally put the meat in a dingy little pan, carefully watching it to make sure that it didn't burn, occasionally prodding at it with a wooden fork to keep it moving. Sighing, he dumped the slab onto a wooden plate, scowling down at it. The sole part of his life that Haru detested was the cooking – he couldn't do it the way his mom and sister had always managed.

He sighed, stabbing the meat with his fork and ripping off a bite, trying not to think of his family, especially not his absent father.

The only thing that Haru had ever known about him was that they looked, apparently, identical. From what his older sister had told him – his mom had burst into tears whenever she was asked about him – the man had to leave when Haru was just a baby for some sort of quest. According to Cattleya, he wasn't really around before, just little visits now and then. Just before Haru had been born was when he vanished, and although his mother seemed to know why, she refused to tell Cattleya.

The farmer sighed, shaking his head and clearing such thoughts away. "I don't give a damn about my dad!" he cried, tearing off another chunk from the meat. Just as he was finishing, a sudden pounding from the door caused him to pause as he was about to begin washing his woken utensils. "What the…?" he asked, placing the plate and fork on the table and heading to the door.

As soon as he opened the door, a man that was by far older than he was fell onto him, knocking them both over. "What the hell?!" Haru cried in shock, catching them both on his palms. The man groaned, and it was then that the farmer noticed a series of bruises, cuts, and blood on his skin and clothes, "H-hey, are you alright?!"

"H-help…please…" the man groaned, sounding feeble, "P-please…water…something…" he continued, looking up and staring at Haru with eyes that were darker than any other green the farmer had ever seen before.

Immediately, he set into motion; pulling the man off of him and grabbing some water from his porch-well. "H-here, drink this," he commanded, nearly throwing the liquid down his throat. The man took large grateful gulps, water trickling down his cheeks and dribbling onto his chin. Three more times Haru went back and retrieved water for the man until he was able to deny it. "You sure?" the farmer asked him worriedly, helping him into a sitting position.

"Yes, thank you," he replied gratefully, grinning up at him. "You got a name, kid?" he asked in a strange voice – he didn't sound nearly as weak as he had when he fell onto Haru.

"Name's Haru," Haru replied, sitting in a chair next to him, "You?" he asked. The man grinned happily, jumping up and bowing deeply. "E-eh…? But…but, what about your wounds?" Haru asked, nearly falling out of the chair.

The man laughed heartily, shaking his head. "All fake, my liege! Ooh, Alpine's gonna be so happy when I bring you back to the castle!" he cried, grinning up at the confused boy. Haru blinked at him, and gave him a look that was clearly questioning his sanity. For whatever reason, the man found this insanely funny, and slid into the chair across from him, "Haru, have you ever seen a picture of King Gale Glory-Symphonia IV?"

Haru shook his head, "My mom taught me to read and to write, but she had no pictures of the King." The man grinned wider, looking truly elated.

"Well, you're his spitting image. I've seen the King myself, before he vanished, and trust me – you look identical to him," he said cheerfully, leaning on the table. "Haven't you ever wondered who you really are? I mean, this little farm is cozy and all that, but didn't you ever think of being something…more? Something a lot better than this?" he asked in a low voice.

The farmer wanted to deny every question. He wanted to pretend that his mom's distance towards his father and the longing of the truth of who he was just didn't exist. But, this man's words rung with bells of truth that were impossible to even consider denying. "Who _are_ you? Why are you coming here and asking me all these questions about my family and the King?" Haru replied, keeping his face smooth. However, the man opposite him seemed to have picked something up from his tone, and he leaned in closer.

"Who I am isn't nearly as important as whom _you_ are, Haru. Are you ready to hear the truth? I can answer all those questions that you've been denied since birth," he asked, leaning in closer. Haru stared at him wondrously, shaking slightly. Unable to say anything, he merely nodded, looking down at his hands. "Your mother, Sakura, was the lover of our late King Gale Glory-Symphonia IV. His Highness left the Kingdom sixteen years ago in order to defend our great lands against the Raregroove family, but we've recently received news of his premature death, though the Raregrooves also suffered a great defeat – our King managed to slay their own.

"We also learned, from reading his will, of his beautiful lover of the name Sakura. He left everything to her, and, if the slim chance she is not around at the time of his death, to his oldest living descendant. Through the townspeople, we learned that the farmer Sakura died six years ago alongside her daughter Cattleya with the disease that spread through this town. Through my own private investigation, I learned that a young boy was still living there, a teenager with the trademark Symphonian silver hair…

"I checked each and every farm in this area, Haru, and not one person ran to my aid the way that you did. Not one of these people had hair that was as silver as your own, which is what I was really checking. Anyways, I knew from the instant that you helped me through my false injuries who you are. Have you guessed yet? You, Haru, are the young heir that we've searched for; Prince Haru Glory-Symphonia; the new King of Symphonia!"

Silence followed his exclamation, but the man did not waver. Haru, instead, was unable to stay as calm; tears were flowing down his tanned cheeks, and he was holding his head in his hands. "My dad was the…the _King_…and my mom didn't even tell us…" he muttered, clenching his eyes closed tightly. "My dad was the King, and that means that I'm royalty. Not just any sort of royalty…the _King_. Oh, God…"

"Those at the castle have been awaiting your arrival, my King. The crowning ceremony will take place soon, if you are willing to return to the castle with me. Haru," he said seriously, kneeling next to him, "this is your choice. If you do not wish to take up the legacy that your father has left you, I will never tell a soul of your whereabouts. If you wish to come with me, and leave this all behind, then I will take you. I do not wish to take away this life of yours if you do not wish for it, nor do I have any desire to force my King into what he does not wish for. Again, Haru, this choice belongs to you alone."

Haru stared down at him, wiping away his tears silently. "I…I will come. I will face my awaiting destiny," he finally said, standing. The man grinned up at him happily, taking the hand that Haru offered for him, "Please…take me to the castle. I want to know who I really am."

"It shall be my pleasure, Prince Haru," he replied calmly, watching Haru look around the tiny house. The only thing he made a movement to grab was a framed photograph of his mom, sister, and him just before the elder two became sick. The man bowed his head to give him some privacy, waiting patiently while Haru took his last looks around.

The silver haired Prince felt a very strange repel from this place – it was the place that his mother sunk into depression before her death, where his older sister was confined against her dreams of freedom, and where he had resigned himself to living in forever. He had never once thought of himself as anything but an orphaned farmer, but now…now, he was Prince of Symphonia! A smile appeared on his face at the thought, and he finally turned back around to face the other man, who had been careful enough to avert his eyes. "I'm ready," the Prince said firmly, standing back up and heading towards him, "When we get to the castle…will everything be explained?"

The man nodded, holding the door open for him, "Of course, Haru. Lessons will begin immediately, and once you are decent with a sword you shall be crowned the King." Haru nodded, taking a deep breath before stepping outside, grinning as he heard the door close behind him.

"I never did catch your name," he asked as they began walking. The Prince gazed out at the fields he had so laboriously worked on the past six years, feeling an odd sense of attachment to them. They, if nothing else on his mother's land, had been his mantra. The work had been hard, there was no denying that, but it was soothing to him. The farm work was an escape to him, a chance to ignore the previously unanswerable questions.

"I'm called the Sword Saint around the castle, but you can call me Shiba," Shiba replied, noticing his longing looks, "My Prince, I will personally find a good family to take control of your mother's land."

Haru nodded, taking a deep breath and forcing himself to continue moving forward. "Thank you, Shiba," he replied softly, clutching the picture tightly as they continued on.

*

"Can you wait here for me?" Shiba asked lowly once they reached the grand castle, "I'm going in to get Alpine – he'll explain everything." Haru nodded nervously, glancing around at the numerous guards patrolling around. "They won't bother you, don't worry," the black haired soldier said, noticing his uneasiness, "I'll be right back."

Without another word, Shiba slipped into the castle, leaving Haru to marvel at the beautiful grounds that would soon belong to him. However, these marvels were cut short by a loud bang from within, following by a thundering of footsteps towards the door that Shiba had just disappeared behind. "E-eh?" Haru asked, stepping back slightly. In seconds, his questions were answered by the door flying open and a crowd of people running towards him.

The head of them was an older man with long, spring green hair, and eyes that were the kind that sparkled even in the night. "My Prince!" he cried, grabbing his shoulders before Haru could sprint away, "My God, you truly do look King Gale!" the man grabbed his hand, and, thankfully, simply held it instead of kissing it. The other soldiers around him strained to get a better look for a brief second before kneeling down as well, much to Haru's unnerved mind.

"H-hey…hey!" he said, shaking his head, "Come on, don't bow to me! I'm no King yet – I'm still a farmer until the crown is on my head, OK?!" he said desperately, gently pulling away his hand and bowing to them, "Please…I just want to know about my family and why my dad really left behind the people he claimed to love."

Silence settled over the crowd at his bow, and no one dared to break it. "Alpine, you explain to Haru what the hell's going on, and I'll send out messengers to the people of our land," Shiba said calmly, smiling at Haru as if he approved. Alpine nodded, shouting demands to the soldiers to disperse before turning away and leaving Haru behind. "Follow him; he's obedient, and if you want him to think of you as a farmer for now, he will," Shiba explained, pushing him forward.

Rushing, Haru followed him, waving at Shiba once before turning back to Alpine, jogging besides him. "Sir, Alpine, where are we going?" he asked breathlessly, nearly running to keep up.

"I will explain all in due time. Now, in here, Prince Haru," he directed, stopping at a large door and holding it open for him, "Wait here for me and the other Knights." Obviously, Haru thought as he stepped inside, this man does not take 'no' for an answer. Before Haru could ask when he would explain, Alpine shook his head, "Wait for me here. The truth shall be learned soon enough."

~x~

Author's Note: I AM SO SORRY. I really, truly, am!!! I PROMISE to make updates MUCH faster than they have been!!! ;___; Don't hate me, lovely readers…


	2. Chapter 2: Explanations

Upside Down

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Author's Note: Thanks Notorious for the lovely review. (: And again, I apologize wholeheartedly to all my readers (if they still read what I post) for taking down a total of two stories. D:  
Anyways, I know this chapter is shorter than the last, but, I promise, it's just because this is more of a filler chapter, not an actual super-important chapter. ):

Disclaimer: I own no character. Darn.

~x~

**Chapter Two: Explanations**

Haru sat in that room for hours before the door finally reopened, revealing not just Alpine or Shiba, but three other people as well; a girl with long black hair and two men. "Uh…hello?" he asked, standing up. Immediately, the three newcomers dropped to their knees, tears falling from their eyes. "Hey! Hey, what's going on?" he asked nervously, frowning.

"Prince Haru, having been living as nothing but a mere farmer does not feel comfortable with the formalities we are obligated to show him. For now, I ask that you all refrain from bowing," Shiba said formally, glancing at the young Prince. "Haru, these are Clea," he continued, gesturing to the girl, "Deerhound," the gesture went to the largest man, "and Dalmatian."

Nervously, Haru nodded to each of them in turn. "Pleasure to meet you," he said kindly to them all, sitting back down in the chair he had spent hours in. The five around him all sat down in the open chairs, staring at him wondrously. "As you can guess, I have a ton of questions for you all," he added softly, leaning forward seriously.

"Naturally," Alpine said briskly, "And those questions shall be answered promptly. My fellow Knights and I shall do our best to satisfy any lingering doubts you hold."

Haru mentally prayed that he'd never begin to talk like that, but nodded gratefully. "Why did my dad keep my mom and us a secret? I mean, he was the King, right? Couldn't he have married her without a problem?" he asked, ignoring the fact that was three questions and not just one.

The woman leaned forward, looking rather amused, "My Prince, your father was engaged to a beautiful young Queen some nations away and therefore chose to keep his true love of Sakura a secret, in order to keep the peace. Had he broken off his engagement, His Majesty would have caused a war with the nation, a war that we would not be able to win in our current situation." Haru stared at her blankly, not having heard of anything of the sort before. "It's customary for a King to marry with a Queen or Princess from a neighboring country, for land, wealth, and power. Very rarely does royalty marry for love at first; it's been known that many arranged marriages as such will later result in love," Clea added.

"That's not gonna happen to me, is it?" Haru asked worriedly, glancing at Shiba as if it was his fault that he might be forced into a marriage he didn't want. Silently, the others around him exchanged a look, causing the Prince to slump back in his chair. "I don't wanna get married to some girl if I don't honestly love her! I mean, that's just…wrong," he said softly, shaking his head.

Dalmatian shrugged, pulling his long pipe out of his mouth, "If it would bring peace and serenity to our land, is it not your duty as King or Prince to go through with it?" he asked, watching as Haru fell silent, "My liege, I do not approve of arranged marriages either, but if it allows us peace, than surely you can understand why it must be done." Haru sighed, nodding reluctantly. Dalmatian nodded in approval, placing his pipe back in his mouth and taking a long drag.

Haru looked out the window for a few seconds before turning back to them, "What do I need to learn now that I'm…not a farmer?" he asked softly, looking down at his hands. The group exchanged another look, this time the largest man leaning forward.

"You'll have studies with Alpine, swordsmanship with Shiba, meditation with Dalmatian, strength with me, and etiquette with Clea," he answered in a booming voice. Haru looked back up, nodding. "Alpine's got a whole schedule for you, so you won't get confused," Deerhound added cheerily, leaning back in his chair. The carrot topped man nodded to Alpine in an obvious gesture for him to take the lead.

The man nodded, glancing sideways at Deerhound before turning back to the young Prince, "On Mondays, you shall be studying with me from directly after breakfast is served to right before supper is served. The time slot stays the same; it is only the actual activities that vary day to day. You will spend Tuesday with Deerhound, Wednesday with Dalmatian, Thursday with Clea, and Friday's with Shiba. The weekends are yours to do with what you will," Alpine said briskly, glancing down at his watch, "Since today is nearing a close, you shall have your first session with Clea tomorrow. A servant shall be sent to your quarters as the cooks are setting the dining hall for breakfast, so you can bathe and be down in time to eat."

That being said, the man with green exited, following closely by Clea and Dalmatian, "He might not show it, but he's actually really excited that we found you," Shiba said casually, standing up. "Hey, Deer, wanna give our Prince the grand tour with me?"

Deerhound laughed, nodding, "'Course I do! Can't though; I gotta go train my soldiers, and start recruiting some new servants to accommodate for our youngest addition to the castle," he said, waving at Haru, "See ya' Prince Haru!" Haru waved back at him as he left, standing once he had left to turn to Shiba.

"Let's go, we got a lot of ground to cover before you get to sleep," he said, holding the door open for Haru, "Today, I'm just gonna show you to your own quarters. Originally, the castle has five separate wings; the east, west, south, north, and upper north. When the first King of Symphonia built it, he decided to have his strongest knights in the lower north wing, the servants and cooks in the east, the recreational stuff in the west, the dining hall and ballroom in the south, and his family and his upper north wing."

Haru listened attentively, following closely behind Shiba as he continued his explanations. However, as they continued on to history about the castle and the land, the Prince's eyes glazed over and he instead focused on the various paintings of his family hanging on the wall. From what he could see, every male – and some females – looked identical, with some variations from their mothers. As they neared his own quarters, Haru froze in shock, staring at his father and grandfather.

Unlike him, they had long silver hair and some form of facial hair. Their eyes were narrowed in a sort of way that commanded absolute respect without even trying, and an air of kindness that the artist had somehow masterly painted in. Their eyes were the exact same shade of purple that Haru knew his to be, but his were rounder, due to his mother. "How did my dad get that giant scar across his face?" he asked Shiba, who had stopped with him.

"Surely you've heard of the Raregroove family and kingdom…?" he asked, waiting for Haru's slight nod, "Well, before we went to war with them, King Gale Raregroove and King Gale Glory-Symphonia had grown up as best friends. They were the exact same age, and were both extraordinary swordsmen. Unfortunately, the blood of Raregroove and the blood of Symphonia ran through their veins, and it inevitably split them. Anyways, our King traveled over to his land to try and compromise with the man, and came back with his scar. I believe it was this sudden new hatred His Majesty felt for the man that brought him back to his castle several months ago, only to meet his premature end. However, his skill was matched with his rival, and the two killed each other in what I heard was within the same minutes."

Haru continued to gawk at his family for several seconds before nodding at Shiba and continuing onwards. "I didn't realize that every Symphonian King looked like the next," he admitted, taking one last look at the portraits before rushing to keep pace with his green eyes tour guide.

Shiba chuckled, stopping at two, tall, grand doors, "All the Symphonian males – and some females – are clones. That's how I knew you were of the family as soon I saw you. Anyways, this is your private quarters. Inside are a small antechamber, a master bedroom, a bathing room, a small changing room, a recreational room, and a study. I will allow you to explore as you wish tomorrow, but the bedroom is the first door on the right," he instructed, bowing deeply, "Until tomorrow, my King." Haru nodded at him uncomfortably before pulling the doors open and stepping into the small antechamber.

Along the walls was a narrow strip of blue over the canary yellow wallpaper. Another large portrait of the previous king stood in between two doors directly across from him, the frame made out of a light oak color with a golden liner. The doors themselves were made of black walnut wood, with a small silver door handle on the right center. "Wow," Haru breathed, turning to his right and entering his bedroom with a small gasp.

The room would have been able to fit several of his small houses' inside; the bed alone was large than his house! Dark green curtains hung over the sides, concealing the coloring of the covers or pillows, but the frame of the bed was made from a golden oak tree, with an elaborate design riding up the edges and sides. The walls were the color of a royal blue coloring, with a green that matched the curtains winding around the top in a foot long band. A door led to what could have only been the dressing room – though, Haru wasn't sure; it could be the bathing room – was off the left, with the same coloring as the door behind him. Across the room stood a series of shelving and drawers, all with golden handles over cherry colored wood, with various knickknacks decorating the surfaces.

"Wow…" Haru breathed again, slipping off his dingy shoes as if he was in some sort of temple. Immediately after, he yanked off his dirty tunic, and looking around as to where to put them. _Alpine had said something about personal servants…does that mean I should just leave these laying around? Should I just…go to sleep?_

After several minutes of indecision, Haru finally sighed and allowed the tunic to slip from his tired fingers and onto the floor and stepping across the plush carpet and sliding the curtain for the bed open, gazing upon a thick dark green comforter with white at the top, with a multitude of dark green and white pillows on top of it. "No one needs this many pillows," he muttered, beginning to push them all off. The two that he kept on was a long white one, and a shorter green one; one to actually sleep on, and one to prop up the other one.

Tentatively, he climbed into the bed and pulled the thick comforter over his body smoothly. To the young Prince, it felt as if he was intruding in someone else's bed, and it suddenly occurred to him that, in this very bed, all the past Kings and Queens of Symphonia had slept in. A grin came to his face as he rolled over, forcing his eyes shut and drifting off into sleep.

~*~

"Sieg! Sieg Hart! Wake up, you old fool!" a young man said loudly into the night, pounding on the door of a poor man's house in the very village Prince Haru had grown up just several miles away from. Next to the man stood a young girl in a long brown cloak, concealing every inch of her except for her milky fingertips.

Finally, a series of thuds from indoors told the two that the man they had been rudely awakening was indeed awake. Several seconds later, his door opened, revealing a man with long, messy blue hair, narrow eyes the of a royal purple color, a strange design dancing down his right cheek. "What do you want, Shuda?!" he demanded sleepily, glancing briefly at the girl next to him before returning his gaze back to his red haired friend.

Shuda smirked at him, his burnt orange hair falling around his face lankly and the scars around his tanned face and crimson right eye stretching. "This, my friend, is what we have been waiting for. May we come in? I don't want attentive ears of others to hear," he said, dropping his voice to a low tone. Sieg immediately perked up, nodding firmly and moving aside for the two to enter his home. Swiftly, he poked his head out of the door, gazing up and down the road before shutting the door and locking it.

"Please, sit down," Sieg said shakily, gesturing to the several chairs around a dingy table. His two guests sat down, gazing at him as he quickly moved around the kitchen, setting the kettle on the small stove to boil before sitting down. "Shuda, I wasn't expecting to see you for another several months. What happened to have made this possible?" he asked in an undertone, keeping his purple eyes on the only crimson eye of his friend. Shuda, instead, glanced at the girl next to him before leaning forward.

"Change of plans. The Golden Prince turned his eye to our guest; I needed to take her away as soon as I could manage, which happened to be tonight. The whole city will be in uproar tomorrow morning, but, thankfully, we have chosen to disguise her better than they would expect," he explained softly, nodding at the girl to remove her hood.

In the dusty yellow light of Sieg Hart's house, the young girl pulled her hood off, revealing skin the color of cream, chocolate brown eyes, and hair that was like honey and caramel mixed. Sieg's eyes widened in shock as he stared at her hair, "What did you do to your hair, Princess? Ah…I see. You're absolutely correct, Shuda; the Kingdom will send out searchers looking for all girls with long brown hair, not shoulder length. And the coloring is different than they will be imagining, I'm sure," he said softly, turning back to Shuda. "What do you want me to do, Shuda? Take her in? I already have Niebel, and although he is a very smart child, he knows not of our plans."

Shuda glanced at a door leading away from the kitchen. "I want you to protect her from the Golden Prince. Never, under any circumstances, may they be allowed to be alone. Need I remind you of what our Princess possesses? He has been, and will most likely be for quite some time, looking for a power such as hers. Magic is scarce, as you know well, so she is needed more than ever in this age," he replied firmly, leaning forward as well.

"I will never succumb to the Golden Prince," the girl said bravely, glancing between the two men, "I have already denounced my title, my family, and my people. I am no longer who I was this early morn; I am but a peasant. A peasant that would be more than honored if such a revered man as yourself were to take me in and raise me as your own until I can do so myself."

Silence settled over the two for a few seconds, but the girl did not waver. "It's settled," Sieg said, standing up and pouring the steaming kettle into three separate mugs, "I shall house this beautiful peasant for as long as her need remains." Shuda smiled at him, accepting the mug gratefully and handing the next to the young girl. She picked it up with shaking hands, lifting it up as the two older men around her did as well.

"To life, peacefulness, and to the new Prince of Symphonia!" Sieg declared, and the three clicked their mugs together before drinking deeply.

~x~

Author's Note: I'm sorry updates are taking so long, I really am. ): And, unfortunately, this shall be the last one until after my Spring Break, as I will be traveling down to Florida with my friend and her Grandparents Friday early in the morning.  
I love you all, my lovely readers. You do know that, right?


	3. Chapter 3: Lessons, Friends, and Dad

Upside Down

~x~

Author's Note: HOME SWEET HOME!!!!!! Ahhhhhh, it feels so wonderful to be home. x3 Anyways, this chapter's also gonna be a bit like a filler chappie, but it's also going to have a LOT of hints and foreshadowing, so pay close attention, OK?! Also, we're introducing quite a ton of people you all know and love, but it's all for good reasons. (: Enjoy

Disclaimer: I still own no Rave character, only Mashima-Sensei does.

~x~

**Chapter Three: Lessons, Friends and, Dad**

Hours later, when the young prince rose, he found that his body was still working on his farming schedule – up with the sun, down with the sun. He sighed, rolling over and staring up at the high canopy ceiling, rubbing his eyes tiredly. As he began to sit up he heard some scuffling in his room and the prince immediately shot up, looking around in surprise.

Off the far right – well, Haru's right – was a very tall woman leaning over and picking up his discarded clothing. "Er…hi?" he called out, startling her to the point of dropping his clothes again and straightening up in shock, her face pale in the moonlight. Had Haru not been aware that he was stark naked, he would have gotten up and shook her hand. "I'm sorry, but…who are you?" The woman smoothed her dress, her pale face turning red.

"Oh, uh, well, um…m-my name's B-Belnika," she introduced, curtsying deeply at him. She had hair that looked pale blue, and eyes that shone the same hue in the dark. Though she looked incredibly pale, the young lady's skin had turned to a bright red in her blush, "Sir Alpine-sama assigned me to be your personal servant." Haru nodded, rubbing the back of his head nervously, blushing as well. "I brought you clean clothes, your Highness," she added quickly, scurrying over to the shelves and pulling out a stack of crisp looking clothes.

Haru grinned at her, rubbing the back of his neck again, reaching with one hand for them as she held them out for him while bowing her head deeply. "Belnika," he said seriously, causing the girl to look up in surprise, her face darkening, "I don't want us to have this kind of formal relationship. I mean, we're gonna be seeing a lot of each other, right? Well, I want us to be friends. So, you don't have to be all shy and nervous around me." Belnika stared at him in shock for a few seconds before smiling back at him tightly and nodding. "Good. So, um, is there a place I could…you know, take a bath?" he asked, blushing a little bit himself.

As if he had spoken the magic words, the bedroom door burst open, revealing two elderly women, dressing similarly to Belnika. "Prince Haru," the one in front said in a booming voice, "up. Now." Rather frightened, Haru grabbed a mess of sheets and wrapped it around his waist, standing up and making sure to keep his back straight. The woman rolled her eyes, jabbing a finger at the door, "Belnika, leave," she directly briskly. With a small smile on her face, the blue haired maid vanished to the outskirts of the room, leaving Haru alone with two, in his opinion, very demanding old women.

Without another a word, the other of the two stepped forward, and Haru realized that she wasn't in the slightest old; her hair was just a very fine shade of blond. She had no wrinkles in sight, but she was obviously older than Haru was, maybe the age his older sister would have been had she lived through that disease. "Get those things off, we gotta bathe you," she said, leaning forward and gazing right into Haru's eyes.

"Wha-what?!" Haru asked incredulously, stepping back nervously, "I can bathe myself just fine, thank you." The girl rolled her eyes and, with one quick motion, ripped away the sheets from his waist, revealing all of Haru's manhood. The older woman didn't even glance away from his eyes, instead grabbing his arm and pushing him towards another door rather roughly. Haru was speechless, simply covering himself up as the two women quite literally threw him into an enormous bathing tub.

Too stunned to pay much attention to the décor, Haru simply stared up at these two women, unable to speak. "My name's Sonya," the elder one said cheerfully, putting her hand on Haru's head and dunking in the steaming water. When she allowed him to resurface, it was only to allow him to cough and breathe before being dunked again.

"And I'm Julia," the other one said, lifting his arm and beginning to scrub viciously with a large scrub brush. Haru yelped loudly, trying to take his arm back from her rough hands. Julia grinned at him, simply tightening her hold, "Haru, we're not trying to kill you. We're the Royal bathers, well, she is. I'm still an apprentice." Haru ignored her, continuing to try and yank his arm free. To his horror, Sonya grabbed his other arm and doing the same, if not harder. "Relax, geez. Quit being so tense," she told him happily, beginning to lather soap on his arm before continuing to scrub.

Haru decided to simply ignore them, trying to preserve what little dignity he had left. Julia and Sonya, however, seemed to be intending that thorough meant extremely painful, so the young prince gave a quite few yelps of pain. As they began to lift his leg to get around his waist, Haru shoved their hands away, shaking his blushing red firmly, "No. Let _me_ do that part!" he told them sternly. The two women exchanged for a meaningful look, and for a few seconds, Haru thought maybe they'd refuse him, as they would look between each other and him. Finally, they rolled their eyes together and held out the scrub brush for him to work with, standing up and wiping their sopping hands on their aprons. "Really? You guys aren't pulling my leg?" he asked hesitantly, reaching forward and grabbing the scrub brush, taking it quickly when he had gotten a hold of it.

Julia smirked at him, leaning forward so their eyes were just several inches apart, "Kid, we're not here to take away all your dignity. And trust me, no bath will ever be as bad as the one you'll get after that first lesson with Shiba. Then you'll really be in pain," she promised, patting his head with a smirk. Deciding not to ask why, he waited patiently for them to leave, waving slightly with his other hand. "Don't stay in too long – breakfast is almost ready, and Maltese-sama is not one to keep waiting," the silvery blond called as she slipped through the door.

As soon as the two women were out the door, Haru began to wash his groin, considerably softer than they had. As much as his arms stung, and his sun kissed skin burned due to their rough scrubbing, Haru could see the amount of filth in the tub and felt much cleaner than he had last night. Wishing he could have sat in the warm tub for a bit longer, the Prince rose and grabbed the nearest towel, stepping out before wrapping it around his waist, staring across the room at a large, ornate mirror.

His silver hair was plastered onto his forehead, dangling in front of his purple eyes in heavy strands, trying to spike back up naturally. With a chuckle, he began to dry his body off, wincing slightly as his skin burned. Not that he had never had a bath before that moment, but he hadn't really tried to keep all the dirt and whatnot off – it was too tiring to scrub so hard each and every night he bathed, which wasn't that often. Water was more important to the crops, not to his body; besides, he was usually too tired at the end of the day.

Once he was completely dried off, he grabbed his new set of clothing, which consisted of a plain blue tunic and ivory slacks. "Not very fancy for a Prince," he muttered in slight amusement, pulling it over his head anyways, and the slacks over his bare legs, feeling a small object in his pocket. Confused, he pulled it out, finding a long black necklace with several beads on it, and a small, folded piece of paper.

Eyes wide in surprise, he unfolded the paper and held it closer to the light to read.

_'My son,_

_If you're reading this, and I sincerely hope that you are not, it means that you are alone in the world, and that I have failed my promises. I promised your Mother, as soon as she told me that she was pregnant once again, that I would never allow our son to be thrown into the God awful world I grew up in. I promised her that you wouldn't know my identity, that you'd be safe._

_But, if you're reading this, then I failed you. For that, amongst millions of other things, I am sorry. Haru, I hope that you do not hate me for all that I failed to do for you before my time came for me, yet I would be understanding if you do harbor hatred and anger towards me. I was not there; I left behind my family when I should have stayed._

_Please know this; I love you. I have loved you from the second Sakura told me that you even existed, just as I loved your sister. It is no substitute for my mistakes, but I hope that it helps soothe whatever pain I have caused._

_As I will not be around to help guide you through the sticky road of politics, and your only guide will be those wretched advisers, read carefully, my son;_

_Follow your heart. Do what you think is best for the people of your country, but do not put your own interests first. Visit with them. Speak with the ones that you grew up around and ask of their opinions on what they believe should be done. Hold some form of council. The only people that should be choosing their rights' are the people, you are just merely a guide._

_On that note, I advise you to listen to five people very closely, as they are pure in heart and unclouded in mind. My four Knights of the Blue Sky; Alpine the Bright, Deerhound the Strong, Dalmatian the Wise, and Clea the Level, along with the strongest man in this Kingdom – perhaps the entire world, when it comes to swordplay – Shiba the Sword Saint. These five are the only people apart from yourself to truly trust in this Kingdom, my son, as they will never intentionally steer you wrong._

_I could sit here and write millions of words, all for you, but I will have to suffice with just one more paragraph, as my carriage is ready to leave. It is a shame that I will never be able to see you as you age, nor that I will ever be able to say all that needs to be said to your face._

_Remember Haru, your father will always love you, and always has, from the moment he realized your existence was._

_My guilt will never be as strong as the anger, pain, or even hatred you feel for me, so I say this without hope that you will accept it; I apologize from the very bottom of my heart that I failed you._

_Gale Symphonia-Glory IV_

_PS: The necklace was something I bought for you when you just an infant. I have a matching one, but Sakura refused to allow you to wear it, being so young.'_

For a few seconds, Haru simply stared at the paper, his hands shaking dreadfully. While his Father had apparently thought that he had hated him, the Prince held only one feeling towards the man, until that very moment; confusion. Anger suddenly began to well up in his body, and, with the letter and necklace clamped firmly in his hand, he stormed out of the bathing room without even touching his hair.

Just as he was slamming the door to his wing, he found himself face to face with the very person he had stormed off to see. "Haru?" Shiba asked in confusion as the young Prince grabbed onto the front of his shirt, slamming against the nearest wall.

"Tell me about my Dad!" Haru screamed. Shiba's green eyes widened, but he made no move to pull away from the infuriated Prince, "Why won't you just tell me about him?!"

Shiba sighed, not meeting his gaze, "Because you aren't ready to hear about him yet." Realized that the Prince holding onto him looked murderous, he quickly opened his mouth and continued, "If I sat down and told you everything about your father right now, you wouldn't be able to understand! I know, honestly Haru, I know that this isn't the answer you want to hear, but you just aren't _ready_!"

"Bullshit!" Haru screamed, slamming him against the wall again. Shiba's eyes narrowed in impatience, and in a heartbeat, he had thrown Haru off of him, towering over the younger man angrily.

"This is why I won't tell you," he said acidly, "You aren't as mature as you think, my Prince." For a few minutes, the two remained still like that, until Haru calmed down enough to unclench his fists and refold the paper, holding the necklace in his shaking hands. "Wear that proudly; Gale spoke of great things for that trinket," Shiba said softly, holding his hand out, which Haru took slowly, sighing and rubbing his back where he fell. The green eyed man seemed completely untroubled by the fact he had just been slammed against a wall, as if that was nothing for him. "We still have time for a light breakfast, if you are willing," Shiba told him softly as he led him down the hall.

Haru sighed, not especially caring at the moment. Instead, he focused on unclasping the necklace and pulling it over his still wet hair. "Whatever works," he mumbled, touching it softly when it fell into place around his neck. Shiba didn't reply to his comment, leading him down uncountable hallways to a small room filled with large books, chairs, a desk and a very irritated looking Clea Maltese.

"I won't even ask why Belnika didn't wake him up until _after_ she cleaned his entire room. Get in here, Haru, and Shiba? Get out," she said shortly, grabbing Haru's arm and pulling him into the room. Shiba gave a slight chuckle, waving as he left the room. Once he was gone, Clea thrust a giant book into Haru's arms, "Walk across the room with that on your head. Now."

Not wanting to annoy his instructor further, Haru jumped up and balanced the book on his head, groaning at its' weight. Once it was balanced completely on his head, he took several steps forward only to find that book had slipped right off his head on the right side, landing to the floor with a giant thud. "S-sorry!" he cried, picking up the book and running back to the start, balancing it again and trying again. Five more time he tried to do as instructed, but he never made it even a third of the way across the room, much to his despair. As he was about to try for a seventh time, Clea swiped the book away from him, pushing him into the nearest chair, walking behind. "Uh…what are you doing?" he asked, twisting to see.

Immediately, he felt a hand grope at his back, twisting him back around and forcing him to sit straight. "Your posture is fine…what is it that's setting you off balance…?" Clea mumbled to herself, her hands still groping around his back. "Never mind. Back up, and continue trying," she said, pulling him up.

Hours passed, and Haru had not made any more progress with his task, save for a pounding headache and a throbbing foot from where the book fell repeatedly. "C-Clea-Sensei, can we take a break…? Please?" he begged, singing into a chair weakly. Clea chuckled at him, about to answer when a sudden pounding from the door caught her attention.

"Come in," she called, hands on her hips again. Slowly, three people entered the room, all with the sort of air of royalty that the painter of the Symphonian family had captured so perfectly, though not one of these people looked as if they could have a drop of Symphonian blood. "A-ah! Sir Let, Lady Julia, Prince Musica…to what do we owe the visit?" she asked in surprise, bowing.

Haru perked up at that second name, his jaw dropping at the sight of his bathing lady; whereas before she had been garbed in an old looking black dress with a simple blue apron, Julia was now wearing a long green dress that was extremely low cut, showing off her voluminous curves and rather tanned skin. Her long silvery hair was hanging around her shoulders, decorating her heart shaped face nicely. A single gold necklace adorned her neck, with matching earrings in her small earlobes. The woman's narrow chocolate brown eyes wide with amusement at his expression, her long arms placed on her wide hips.

"Y-you! You said you were a bathing lady!" Haru cried, jumping in shock before forgetting his foot and headache, sinking back into the chair. Julia roared with laughter, shrugging her delicate looking shoulders, "What, did you just wanna see me naked or something?!"

The other two men stared at her in a mixture of curiosity and amusement, but she simply waved them away. "I suppose we did not get to be properly introduced, my Prince. I am Queen Julia of the Makai Country, and this is my husband, King Let. This annoying little kid is our adopted brother, Prince Musica," she introduced with a smile.

Let had wheat colored hair that defied all senses of gravity – even worse than Haru's – and narrow eyes the color of coal, but while they looked rather cold, Haru had a sense of underlying warmth in them. He was dressed in a very fancy blue tunic, with golden buttons and white ruffles decorating it. Around his shoulders was a cape the color of ivory, with blue trimmings and a blue cord keeping it in place. While he wore no jewelry, a thick scar went from his hairline to just above his right eyebrow.

The other one, Musica, had black haired that was obviously manually spiked, and eyes the color of milk chocolate. Three silver balls lined above his left eyebrow, and while he obviously tried to look intimidating, Haru could tell he was extremely kindhearted. He too was dressed in a blue tunic – obviously Makai's colors were blue and white, just as Symphonia's were blue, green, and cream – with long white slacks. A thick silver chain with a skull, snake and dagger design on it went down to the center of his chest, about a third down. He didn't seem to care too much for the fancy clothing; wearing no cape or crown.

"This is the newest royalty? Dude, he's like…fifteen!" Musica said, one eyebrow raising. Haru scowled at him deeply, and he laughed, "Relax, kiddo, I'm only teasing you. Three of us just wanted to drop down and meet our newest ally." Haru glanced at Clea, who had an indifferent expression on her face. "Clea, think the four of us could have some time to chat and get to know each other?" he asked sweetly to the woman, smiling happily.

Though she gave him a look that clearly said he couldn't, she bowed and left silently. "Uh…I'm sorry, I don't think I've ever really heard of Makai before," Haru admitted tentatively, glancing between the three of them as they sat down around him in the extra chairs. Let's expression did not change, but Julia and Musica exchanged a look of amusement.

"That would be because of your previous lifestyle," Let said, interrupting whatever those around him were about to say. "Worry not, young Prince, it shall be learned in due time," he continued, once again cutting off Musica. This time, the black haired man rolled his eyes, leaning forward and placing a hand over Let's mouth to speak.

"Don't you worry about a thing, kiddo. We left Let's brother-in-law in charge of Makai for a while, so we're gonna hang around with you till you get the hang of things. I've been wondering one thing though – how did people not recognize you around town? I mean, all the Symphonia-Glory males look like fucking twins, don't they?" Musica asked, glaring at Let as if daring the older man to cut in again. Haru stared at him in shock – wasn't he a…Prince? That sort of language and slang was stuff he had only heard from the drunkest people in his village.

For a few seconds, Haru tried to figure out this man rather than answer. "Huh? Oh, right," he said when he realized he was receiving stares, "I don't really know. My Dad was sort of…gone a lot, I guess. I never really had a chance to get to know him personally, or even learn about him in school. My Mom taught me an' my sister how to read and write, but we weren't allowed to attend classes," he finally said, shrugging.

"Whoa, seriously?" Julia asked, leaning forward, "Aw, man, you are so totally screwed when Alpine hears that!" Musica and her sniggered, but Let merely cracked a smile.

"I already told him and the other knights," Haru corrected with a slight chuckle, which only caused the two laughing to begin to laugh slightly harder. "What's so funny?" he asked, laughing nervously.

Musica and Julia exchanged another look, bursting out laughing. Let sighed, not taking his coal colored eyes off of Haru's purple ones, "They find it amusing that you are so uneducated and yet still alive after informing your Knights about it." Haru chuckled again, shrugging.

"I guess they spent so much time an' effort lookin' for me, they decided a little educating wouldn't be too big of a deal," he said casually, leaning back in his chair. Musica snorted, leaning back as well.

For a few seconds, the four sat in what wasn't an awkward silence, but rather a more companionable one, as if the four were already close friends that just gone some time without seeing one another. Finally, Julia leaned forward, her hand out, "Prince Haru," she said loudly, "I think the four of us are gonna be great friends." Haru grinned, shaking her hand firmly.

"'Bout time I started hangin' out with people my own age. Or at least, not ten years older than me," Musica agreed, reaching forward and shaking his hand as well. Let smirked, which looked rather cozy on his face, as if it had been there uncountable amounts of time beforehand.

Slowly, the two shook hands. "I will enjoy seeing how your strength goes, Prince Haru," he said shortly. Haru grinned at him, hearing a sort of underlining compassion of sorts beneath his tone.  
_What strange people…but, at least they aren't all stuck up. Julia's right – we're gonna be good friends._

~x~

Author's Note: I AM SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SORRY!!!! I know I said I'd have this up YESTERDAY, but yesterday was too hectic, and it had to be postponed! DDDx  
Pleaaaaseeeee, oh lovely remaining readers of mine, do not hate me. TT~TT  
I really hope I made up for it all with this chapter…Dx


	4. Chapter 4: Even Then, She Was Beautiful

Upside Down

~x~**  
**

Author's Note: Gangsta; Why NOT?! When I was writing the bathing scene, Julia was still an undecided character. I knew she'd be IN the story, just not HOW. But, after typing that whole scene, I realized that I had already planned for Let to be King of Makai, and since we can't have two of the same plot going on in one story (well, you could. But I'm not quite that talented yet), I had to chose - Queen or bathing lady. To make life a tad easier for myself, I just made her both. That, and it seemed like something Julia would do; trick Haru just to mess with him.

Anyways, on to the chapter! Again, we're gonna have some more introductions, and some vague foreshadowing. (: Enjoy

Disclaimer: Still no owning characters. Ha, maybe one day I'll be able to say that in German!

~x~

**Chapter Four: Even Then, She Was Beautiful**

The four sat in that room for several hours, simply chatting and getting to know one another. Haru soon learned that, while Let seemed calm and collected, he had a nasty temper (Musica went into detail about how, when they first met, he had beat the living daylights out of him just for saying the wrong thing), and that Julia was not one to be messed with.

"Yeah, so anyways, tell us what it was like to be a farmer," Musica said after telling a story about a time when Julia and Let had chased him throughout their entire castle grounds for assaulting one of their guests before finally finding him and, quite literally, beat the living daylights out of him…again. Haru looked down at his hands for a moment, trying to think up something exciting and worth telling. "Dude, it doesn't have to be some sort of crazy adventure where you somehow managed to make it out of the way of a wild stampede of cows or something. Just tell us what it was like!" he whined, leaning forward again.

The young Prince sighed. "It was really lonely. I mean, before my Mom an' sister died, it was fine. But, my Mom was always depressed because my Dad was never around," he said, lightly touching his necklace, "and Cattleya – my sister – hated it at that farm, because my Mom was so depressed all the time. And when they died, I was all on my own…which wasn't too bad. It made me really strong when I was really little," he said softly, shrugging. "But, I mean, I was still lonely. All by myself on a farm at the age of ten? It sucked."

For a few seconds, the three stared at him. "I didn't know your Mom and sister died," Let said slowly, crossing his arms again. Julia bowed her head in silent condolence, but Musica just stared right at him curiously, as if his mind a million miles away.

"Let, we should probably go talk to Alpine about our sleeping arrangements," said Julia finally, standing up. Let nodded, holding his hand out to Haru to shake, which he immediately stood up for and shook briefly. "Next time you see me, kid, I won't be forcefully scrubbing on your arm or back or leg, got it?" the Queen asked, saluting him sideways, smirking at his expression. Haru waved back, watching as the two departed.

"So, how did your family die?" Musica asked softly, watching Haru carefully. The younger one stared back in confusion. The black haired one didn't look away, leaving Haru feeling rather uncomfortably.

"Uh…well, my Dad died in some brawl with the King of Raregroove. I guess he killed the other dude as well though, so it apparently wasn't a wasted death. Or so I've heard," he started, shrugging slightly, "An' my Mom and sister died from that illness that hit the town and city six years ago. A lot of younger kids were killed, not just girls. My sister caught it first, and then my Mom did, because she refused to leave her side. Cattleya might have survived if she had…because when she got better and my Mom got sick, and Cattleya caught it again because she was nursing her."

While he had spoken, Musica's brown eyes never left his, causing the younger Prince's discomfort to rise. "When I was really little, my entire family was killed out of jealousy. They were the…best alchemists and weapon makers in the whole world; everyone knew the Musica family. Anyways, this dude named Rize took me in because he happened to see the aftermath, and I lived with him for a couple years. He also taught me this awesome technique, called Silver Claiming; it's like nothing I had ever seen my family try to do. Anyways, he died when I was like…I don't know, like fifteen? Well, just as I buried him, Let and Julia were at the funeral because they had made this really large order of silver stuff, and Rize had been working on it when he died.

"Well, I promised them that they'd get their silver one way or another without tellin' em' that I didn't live by myself. I mean, yeah they were royalty and all that, but I didn't especially care at that point. So, I made all the silver crap they wanted, and delivered it to them, and they sorta found out I was homeless and parentless. Julia, being the…er, colorful person she is, convinced Let to adopt me, but since I was so close to age with them, he did so as his brother, so I'd be her brother too."

Haru stared at him blankly for several minutes before turning away, blinking rapidly to clear his eyes of tears.

"Musica…" he said softly, glancing at him briefly for a second before away again, "why are you telling me this? We've only known each other for like…not even a half a day!"

Musica grinned slowly, shrugging again. For another few seconds, he stayed silent, which certainly didn't help Haru's discomfort. "Because if anyone in the world would understand what it's like to lose an entire family and get thrust into a world you don't belong to, it would be you, my silver haired friend," he finally said.

Several minutes passed, but Haru stayed silent, trying to come up with the correct words to reply.

Just as he finally found the words he wanted to say, the door burst open and Alpine rushed into the room, looking frantic. "Sir Haru, I apologize for the interruption, but there is someone that you need to meet – immediately," he said quickly, bowing slightly. Haru glanced at Musica apologetically, but the older one simply waved him away with his hand. The silver haired Prince nodded slightly, grinning at him once more before rushing to Alpine and quickly following him out the room.

"Alpine, what's going on? Who do I need to meet?" he asked breathlessly – Alpine was having him run in his urgency, and Haru hadn't exactly had breakfast, and after attempting to walk a book across the room on his head, he was rather exhausted. Alpine's green eyes flashed at him for a second before returning to the vast amount of hallway before him.

For a few more seconds, the two ran. When they finally stopped, it was in front of a large, dark wood door.

"Please, my Prince, drink this," Alpine said urgently, pulling out a very small bottle from within his robe. Haru took it, too out of breathe to ask why, instead simply staring at it. "It will ease whatever discomfort you have at the moment," he explained, waving his hands at him to drink it. With a slight uneasiness, the Prince popped the small cork off and emptied the contents into his mouth.

Immediately, Haru felt changes. His exhaustion faded completely, and any pain he had been feeling from his head or feet was completely wiped clean.

"Wow! This is amazing!" he declared, looking at the empty bottle in amazement. Alpine nodded hurriedly, snatching the bottle from him and opened the door. Grandly, he entered, nodding slightly at Haru for him to follow, which he did, attempting to keep his back straight and walk the way Clea had repeatedly told him that he should earlier.

"I apologize for the belatedness of this, but I hadn't realized that our Prince was still lounging," he said, bowing deeply. Haru glanced at him for a second before looking at the other people. Almost immediately, he noticed a mass amount of people that he did not recognize, which he had been expecting, but two people caught his eye.

One was a male, with long blonde hair and narrow gold eyes. He had tanned skin, much like his own, but with the same flawlessness that Let had had, which Haru lacked due to his years of manual labor. The man looked rather muscular, but he was garbed in a long green tunic that covered the half part of his thumbs, and a large black cape. Around his neck was a golden chain with a small sword attached to the end, its' hilt the color of eerie purple. He stared back at Haru indifferently, but the Prince could just make out a tightening of his eyes at the very sight of him.

With a slight unease, he turned his attention to the girl and gasped. She had skin the color of cream, with long blue hair and round blue eyes. She was dressed in a long white dress that showed off her curvy body, trimmed with gold around the sleeves and hem. A thick golden necklace graced her neck, with diamonds and sapphires decorating the design. She seemed to be rather bubbly, all smiles and blush.

From where he was standing, Haru felt his heart stand still. She was, without a doubt, the single most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his life. Her eyes locked with his, and the Prince immediately felt his heart begin to beat faster than it had ever done so before. He was so focused on the girl that he did not hear Alpine clear his throat, obviously finishing up some sort of conversation with another official. "Prince Haru," he said firmly, breaking the boy's concentration, "I would like to introduce you to the leaders of two of the most powerful nations in the world. The man here is King Lucia Raregroove, descendent of King Gale Raregroove. He has come here with his guards and advisors to wager a peace treaty with us, if allowing.

"And this lovely young woman is Princess Celia, of the Mildesta nation. King Lucia and Princess Celia will be staying with us for several weeks, to oversee your education and to see if allying with Symphonia again will be well worth it," he finished, smiling at everyone in the room. Haru nodded, unable to tear his eyes away from Celia.

The blue haired Princess smiled back at him cheerfully, pressing her fingertips together. "Thank you all so much for allowing me to stay in your beautiful castle!" she cried, blushing slightly. Haru nodded slowly, blushing himself.

"I look forward to watching your progress, Haru Glory," Lucia said, breaking his trance. The silver haired slowly turned to him, nodding with a slight frown. The blonde grinned, but it was more of a smirk than anything, "You look a great deal like your father. It's almost stunning." Haru felt as if ice had been slipped down his back, and his purple eyes narrowed slightly. The blonde's smirk merely became a tab wider, and Celia stayed completely oblivious.

For a few seconds, Haru's vision narrowed so that the only seeable thing was Lucia.

"Your father killed my father," he finally said slowly, clenching his fist.

Lucia's smile widened again. "That isn't true," he denied casually, "Our fathers killed each other in a duel. No one is even entirely sure who killed whom first. I hold no grudge against you or your kingdom, Prince. Neither should you."

Had he not been dimly aware of the presence of at least twenty other people, Haru would have told the man exactly what he could do with his truth. "Very…very well," he finally spat out, earning him both a disapproving and gratified expression from the advisor next to him.

"I'm glad that you've seen my side, Prince," Lucia said smoothly. Haru's eyes widened in anger and understanding; this man was provoking him. He had the sort of tone that reminded him of the way a royal visitor would talk to the villagers – as if they were dirt. Obviously, Lucia did not quite accept the fact that Haru was royalty, still believing him to be nothing more than a farmer. _Fine. He wants to see some self-control? He'll see it then!_

Haru smiled at him tightly, turning back to Alpine.

"Alpine, have you prepared rooms for our guests?" he asked softly, noticing out of the corner of his eye how Lucia seemed to frown for a second before plastering his smirk back onto his expression. Immediately, Alpine nodded, gesturing for the guests to allow him to escort them to their rooms. Everyone began to file out, Lucia first. It gave Haru a bitter taste in his mouth to see such a man act like such a snob; he wouldn't have lasted one day leading the life Haru had. Celia brought up the rear, pausing when she reached Haru, much to his excitement.

"Um…it was wonderful to meet you, Prince Haru," she said nervously, curtseying. Haru chuckled slightly, rubbing the back of his neck in equal nervousness. Celia smiled at him cheerfully, batting her beautifully blue lashes at him, "I've heard so many tales and legends about Symphonia. Mildesta may be a strong nation, but we are nothing compared to the city here! I…um, will you…tell me more? About Symphonia, I mean," she added hurriedly, smiling at him hopefully.

The Prince had never exactly been to the city, just the outskirts of it and the village close to where his farm had been. But, how could he have told such a beautiful woman something like that?

"Oh, oh, yeah! Yeah, of course I will!" he promised with a smile, taking her hand in his own shaking ones and kissing it smoothly, "It would be my honor, Princess."

Celia giggled, covering her mouth with one of her hands. "Thank you so much, Prince Haru!" she cried, rather slowly pulling her hand free of his and turning to leave, "Will I see you at breakfast tomorrow?" she asked, pausing slightly. Haru smiled at her kindly, promising that she would. She giggled once more, rushing out to catch up with her people before getting lost, leaving Haru in a hazy sort of excitement.

"Very smooth, kiddo. Kiss her hand, that always works," a sly voice came from behind him. Haru turned around, his face red in embarrassment, only to find Julia leaning against the wall, some thirty feet away from him. She didn't look particularly amused, as if something had upset her.

"Q-Queen Julia!" Haru cried in surprise, trying to gather up what little dignity he might have been able to spare, "What…what were you doing in here?"

With tight eyes, the blonde stepped forward, peering down at Haru with an expression he could not read. "Your advisor, the green haired old dude, he said that Raregroove and Mildesta were two of the most powerful nations, right? Trust me, kiddo, he's just trying to flatter those two idiot rulers so they'll ally with you guys. Raregroove is a complete mystery – no one that's been there has come back with the ability to give an accurate description of it. The Raregroove family? They like their secrets, and they do anything possible to keep them. And that blue haired bimbo? She hasn't got the first fucking clue on how to rule a nation. Thankfully, she's only the backup Queen – her older sister's got the nation under control," she said acidly, shaking her head in disbelief.

Haru felt anger well up in his chest, but quickly contained it – from what Musica and Let had told him, Julia was not one to provoke while angry. "Why don't you like Celia? I mean, that Lucia dude I can understand, but what has Celia ever done to you guys?" he asked curiously, toeing the ground nervously. Julia's eyes narrowed again, and for a second, Haru believed she might attack him. Thankfully, she gained control over her anger and smiled at him.

"Because she's a blue haired bimbo that isn't fit for her crown. That, and she declared war on my nation several years ago. She was like…fifteen, but thought that she could take out an army of Golem Soldiers. Idiot. Needless to say, her puny little water army was crushed," she explained with a slight shrug. "But, if you're honestly into bimbos, you go right ahead," Julia told him with a slight wave of her hand, passing by him grandly and leaving him behind. For several seconds, the Prince sat in silence until his anger boiled over, sending him out of the room and through the halls, going wherever his feet took him.

In his blind anger, he was dimly aware that he was suddenly outside in the crisp afternoon air, heading towards the grounds. The Prince had no idea where his feet were taking him until he reached a stable, going inside and looking around at the beautiful horses. Finally, his eyes fell on a beautiful blue one, with round black sphere's as eyes. Grinning slightly, and filled with a sort of joy at the fact that his Mom had taught him how to ride a horse before she died, he pulled the beauty out of the stable and mounted her, situating himself before snapping the reigns and heading down the path and towards the village.

_Celia isn't a bimbo! Julia's probably sore about the fact that they declared war on her country and fell so easily…God, Dad was right – politics is confusing!_

About thirty minutes had passed when he finally reached the village, stopping slightly to tie the horse to a tree just inside the wall that lined the grounds of the castle, making sure to tuck it out of sight from horse thieves. Rather nervously, he stepped back into the village, taking a long breath of the familiar smell and beginning to walk the path.

As he walked, so lost in his thoughts, he did not notice as he bumped headfirst into a younger girl, knocking her over. "Oh!" she cried out in shock, followed by the sound of several things dropping, "Oh, I'm so sorry!"

"No, don't be sorry," Haru said wearily, bending over to pick up the various dropped objects, only to stop as his eyes fell on the girl herself.

She was dressed in a long brown dress that was patched, and smudged with charcoal. Her hair was one or two shades lighter than the dress, just barely grazing her shoulders. However, her appearance was not what caught his eyes; it was, in fact, her own eyes that stopped the Prince. They were round in her obvious innocence, russet in color, and yet the most beautiful shade of it. Her skin was lighter than even Celia's, with no blemish of any sort visible. She stared back at him in shock for a second before grabbing her own discarded items and standing up shakily.

"T-thank you very much, sir," she said nervously, smiling at him. Haru smiled back, waving her thank you away with his hand casually. "I'm sorry," she said again, her cheeks pink, "I'm new to the village, and I…I wasn't really watching where I was going, you see, just kind of…looking around."

Haru nodded at her, noticing a rather thick accent on her tongue. It was unlike any other he had heard before, but it was only on certain words. Others, it would appear that she tried her best to disguise it, as if it would become problematic if she didn't. "It's fine, don't worry. I know all about being new someplace and getting too distracted to really pay attention to where you're going," he told her kindly, gaining a slight giggle from her. "Uh, my name's Haru, by the way. Haru Glory."

The girl blinked in confusion at him. "My name's…" she paused for a second, considering whether or not to tell this stranger her name, "Elie. I don't really…have a last name," she finished, biting down on her lip. Haru nodded knowingly; a lot of commoners had only one name. "Have you lived here your whole life?" Elie asked curiously, adjusting the things in her arms.

"Yeah. Well, I lived on a farm, but I know this village like the back of my hand," he explained cheerfully, "Maybe some time, I can stop by and…show you around. You know, let you get a feel of your new home." Elie smiled at him happily, her entire complexion brightening considerably.

"That would be wonderful! Sieg-sama is too busy with class to show me around, and Niebel-chan is too little to leave the house by himself yet, so I don't really have anyone to show me around," she explained, sighing in relief.

Haru chuckled again. "Is Sieg and Niebel your family?" he inquired curiously, noticing slightly how she tensed. Her brown eyes went from warm and inviting to warm and guarded, but her smile was still in place as she shook her head slowly, shrugging. "I see," Haru said slowly, rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

"My family is back in my home village. Sieg is a teacher that was a friend of my family's, and Niebel is his adopted son. I'm staying here until a family issue smooths out," she explained, almost robotically. Haru nodded again, not wanting to pry, "I'm sorry to cut this short, but I told Sieg-sama that I'd be home by now, and, well…I'm not."

The Prince nodded once more, stepping away. "It was nice to meet you, Elie," he said kindly, grinning, "I'll try and come back to the village next Saturday, OK? Just…meet me here right after you have breakfast." Elie nodded, already halfway turned to leave.

"Thanks again, Haru!" she called, grinning at him as she ran off. For a few seconds, Haru watched her go, feeling a sort of warmth in his body that he could only explain as feeling good about himself. He would be helping out another villager. Imagine it, he said silently to himself, me. Helping out someone in need…

~x~

Author's Note: I am SO sorry that this didn't post right. Must've saved it onto the DocX file again by mistake and tried to post it...failing. This one SHOULD work OK! Anyways, YAY, chapter four done! (: Hopefully next chapter will be up a lot sooner than this one was, but I can't promise anything, with my interrupting sisters and whatnot.

AI hope you enjoyed this one, and stay tuned for the next one~

Also, I recently have found myself a –dramatic pause – BETA! This wonderful person is going to take the time and correct all my grammar and spelling mistakes that I missed. (: I'll give them more credit at the beginning of next chapter simply because, once again, I am getting yelled at for being online too long. Sigh.


	5. Chapter 5: Training With Shiba Part One

Upside Down

~x~

Author's Note: I'm gonna write this one faster than last chapter, so hopefully my Beta won't forgot about me again. 8D Also, Gangsta; I suppose that will need to be explained, as that's a VERY good point. Thanks~

OH! Before I write the disclaimer; if you've read the reviews for this story, you've noticed this reader that managed to find nearly every single mistake I ever accidentally made in what I posted, and…well, I decided that this would a perfect opportunity for a Beta! I mean, I make little mistakes frequently, since my mind works a million times faster than I can type, and this wonderful person can find them all! Exactly what I needed, you know. Anyways, I give you my lovely Beta; The Only Weirdo! =D Give em' a round of applause~

Disclaimer: Still no characters owned. Gr.

~x~

**Chapter Five: Training With Shiba; Part One**

As quickly as she could, Elie raced back to her home, heart racing. "Sieg!" she called when she reached the house, reaching up to knock on the door before remembering that this was also her house now, and burst open the door, rushing in, "Sieg?!"

The blue haired teacher immediately stood up, worry lining his features. "What is it?" he asked quickly, going to her side and closing the door behind her. Locking it before he gently lead her to the table and sat her down. "Elie, did something happen?" he repeated slowly, his violet eyes staring into hers. The younger girl grinned, shaking her head.

"Prince Haru spoke to me today," she explained with a laugh; his expression went from frantic to surprised to extremely annoyed in perhaps one second. "I mean, he didn't recognize me or anything, because he's probably never heard of me before, but it was still kind of a thrill. The fact that royalty would actually talk to me…" she trailed off, laughing again. Sieg, however, was clearly not very amused by this, and straightened up, going to the door and unlocking it silently.

"Elie, I understand that your excitement at meeting our new prince must be high, but could you please refrain from acting as though it's some sort of national emergency?" he asked softly, sitting back down on the table and picking up his book and reading glasses. "I thought maybe someone had recognized you," he admitted after a little bit, waving his glasses at her disapprovingly.

The girl shook her head, grinning again. "Shuda-sama's disguise is brilliant! And he said the magic he used was gonna make sure my hair stayed this light forever! Well, at least until Saga-sama makes the changes go away," she explained, leaning her elbows on the table and resting her hands in them. "Anyways, how was your day?" she asked casually, tilting her head at him. Sieg shrugged, opening his book and leafing through it for several seconds before looking back at her.

"It was average. Attempted to teach some miscreants the art of magic, and came home to read," he said dully, shrugging slightly. Elie scowled, rolling her eyes. Before she could speak Sieg cut her off, "No, I will not teach you magic."

"But why not?! I would've started lessons, but then…well, I left," she whined, jutting out her lower lip at him. "I need to learn how to control it! If I don't, I'll never be able to protect myself if something ever happens to you!" she told him, crossing her arms against her chest and glaring at him.

Sieg sighed at her, closing the book slowly. "If something were to happen to me, there are others nearby that will be there to assist you. I understand your craving to learn how to control this, but if the Blonde King realizes that you can control it, he will just work all the harder to find you," he said lowly, leaving no room for arguments. Just as Elie was about to speak, he stood, "I sealed it within you for your protection. None but I will be able to break it, so you need not worry about possible attacks."

Elie fell silent, watching as he left the room, slamming his bedroom door behind him. "Elie-chan?" a smaller voice said from the hall, causing her to turn. The speaker was a little boy, maybe seven in age, with hair the color of cream, and purple eyes that matched Sieg's. Like his foster father, Niebel had a crest decorating his right cheek, only his was much curlier, with two swirls and two branches reaching out in symmetry on the top and bottom of his eye. When she had asked, Sieg had told Elie that the symbol was called a 'Crest of Destiny'. And while he hadn't gone into too much detail about them, Sieg had warned Elie not to go around and tell others that the two people she lived with each had one. Niebel was a smart boy, and had taken to Elie almost immediately after her arrival, with the minimum amount of knowledge.

"Niebel," Elie said rather fondly – she had always had a soft spot for younger children – as she stood up from the table, "you should be in bed. I don't think Sieg-sama would be too pleased if he realized his star pupil was losing sleep."

It amazed her how easily she had managed to fall right into step alongside these people. One week ago, she had been one of the most royal princesses in the entire world. Now? She was a housekeeper for a teacher and his adopted son.

The little boy grinned at her impishly. "Sieg-sama always wants me to go to bed right after dinner, but I always sneak out!" he said, laughing. Elie laughed as well, taking his hand and leading back into the tiny bedroom that the two of them shared, opening the covers for him to crawl back in. "How come you get to go to bed so much later than me!?"

Elie grinned at him, tucking the covers over him slowly. "Because I'm much older than you," she said teasingly, hesitating for a second before swooping down and kissing his forehead. "I'll be in as soon as I clean up the kitchen, OK?" The younger boy nodded, turning over and closing his eyes reluctantly. The brunette giggled at him, "Good night, Niebel-chan," she said softly, slowly exiting the room and heading back to the kitchen.

"'The sixteenth passage of the one shaped by the Gods shall come with two royal forces; one, the Golden King of execrable, and the Silver Prince of inculpable. He that proves victorious will either condemn or save the world'…" she recited under her breath, shuddering slightly despite the lack of breeze. "Maybe things will have changed…"

After Haru had successfully retied the horse in the stable, he quickly made his way back to the castle, longing for some food. Thankfully, his plan of aimlessly wandering was quickly shot down by being found by Dalmatian, who had been patrolling. "Prince Haru, why did you even leave the castle?" he asked in his calm voice, underlying anger hidden amongst his words.

"Because I needed to cool my head, and the village is sort of…well, it's my place to go and calm down," he explained as pleasantly as he could manage, grimacing at the grumbles of his stomach. "Scold me later, OK? Can you just show me to the dining hall?" he asked, "Please?"

The soldier sighed in defeat and began to lead him down the halls, his pipe hanging from his lips. "I don't get why people smoke. It seems like a pretty nasty habit to me," he said after a bit, feeling the need to make conversation.

A smile twitched on Dalmatian's face. "Because, as you seem to find relaxation in running to the village you're familiar with, I find relaxation in my pipe. If battling, my addiction will sometimes bother me to the point of distraction, so I taught myself to fight with it in my mouth at all times," he explained in amusement. Haru sighed inwardly; Dalmatian was obviously friendlier than he first appeared.

"I guess that makes sense. Different people have different things, right?" he said, glancing up at a small sign on the wall that said 'south'. "Oh. Right, the dining halls' in the southern wing. I remember now," he said, laughing at himself. Dalmatian nodded with a smile again, stopping at a large set of double doors. "Thanks a lot, Dalmatian!" he cried hungrily, waving and quickly entering into the dining hall.

In his hunger, the prince completely ignored the room itself, too focused on the long table filled with food. "Haru?" someone familiar asked in surprise, but the prince ignored them. Throwing himself into the nearest chair, grabbing the nearest food and pulling it into his mouth, not even tasting it. For several seconds, he continued like this, until his stomach happily told him to slow down. "Hungry much?" the same person asked, this time laughing. Unlike the first time he spoke, Haru's head snapped towards him, his mouth stuffed.

"Mmmmmmm!" he cried out, the food dropping from his mouth as he pointed at his guest. The man scowled at that, rolling his dark brown eyes at the younger one. "M-Musica!" Haru coughed out, red faced at his display of complete lack of manners. The older one, who was leaning back in his chair and had his feet on the table, smirked.

"Wow, when was the last time you ate?" he taunted, laughing at Haru's expression. "Good thing Princess Celia wasn't here to see that, you know," he continued, grabbing a nearby tall glass and taking a drink from it.

Haru was dumbstruck – how had he heard about that so quickly? "Musica, how…did Julia tell you about that?" he asked shakily, dropping the fork in his hand. The older one smirked, giving nothing away. The younger prince felt his face enflame. "I-I just met her, and…I dunno, she seems really nice. I kinda wanna get to know her…you know?"

One of Musica's eyebrows rose. "I guess so. She's really pretty, too," he said slowly, shrugging. Inwardly, Haru heaved a great sigh of relief; he had thought that the older boy would have reacted similar to how Julia had reacted. "You know who's even prettier than Celia?" Musica asked, smirking as he pulled his feet off the table and leaned forward, "Princess Resha Valentine. Girl's a total babe!" he finished, whistling to himself and leaning back, his imagination running wild.

"Who's Resha Valentine?"

In that one sentence, Musica nearly flung himself off the chair in his attempt to stand up in shock. Haru watched him indifferently, not entirely knowing how to respond to that. "Dude, how can you not have heard about Resha Valentine?!" he demanded loudly, banging a fist on the table. Haru decided not to answer, instead giving him a look that clearly answered his question. "Oh," Musica said slowly, "right. Alright, I'll tell you all I know about this chick; well, apparently, she's a killer dancer. And she's got this real long, kind of bronze colored hair, and eyes that match. Also, even though she's only, like, fifteen years old, she's got this great body. Like, curvier than even Celia," he said, laughing.

Musica took a deep breath, leaning forward seriously, his eyes suddenly darkening in his seriousness. "Anyways, I guess she's got this sort of…special power. I guess she was born with it or something, but it's like…the most destructive power in the universe. A couple thousand years ago, a Goddess apparently came down to Earth and gave the people this power, because it's not just destructive; it can make things. Out of thin air! Well, hundreds of years ago, the Goddess realized that the power she gave to the people was being controlled by the government, and no one else was allowed to use it. In her anger, she took the power away and destroyed the government that it had harbored in."

"What was the Goddesses name?" Haru interrupted, unable to stop the question before it bubbled out. His friend gave him a look that clearly did not enjoy being interrupted, but he scratched his chin.

Several seconds passed while Musica thought about it. "You know…I don't think anyone's ever mentioned her name before. Considering how far back all the stories about her go, it's not really a surprise, but…well, I dunno. You wanna give her a name or something?" he asked, shrugging.

Haru considered. "She's gotta have a name, right?" he said slowly, unable to think of any suitable name for this deity.

"Of course she does," Musica said, rolling his eyes, "but I dunno what it is. Any more questions?"

The younger one shook his head, grinning at him to continue.

"Anyways," he said, impatiently, "this Resha Valentine, she was born on the same day as that Goddess, in the exact hour and minute and everything. So, she decided that this girl would have the exact same face and body as she did, which is why the chick's so attractive. But, she also gave the baby the same power by accident, which was a total shocker. Everyone thought that the Goddess would come back down, kill the girl and take away the power, but she instead gave her the power as a gift of sorts," Musica finished, smirking when he realized how incredibly enthralled his friend was by the story.

For a few seconds, Haru remained quiet. "Have you ever met her?" he asked softly, straightening up once he realized that he had been leaning towards him in his awe.

"Nah. No one's ever met her, besides the people within her castle and kingdom. Her guards are far too protective of her, because of the shit load of prophecies made about her when she was younger," he explained with a shrug.

Thoughtfully, Haru continued to eat in silence. This Resha Valentine person seemed like a wondrous individual, if she had been gifted with such a power. And yet, the prince couldn't help but feel rather sorry for the poor girl. She must have lived such a lonely life, being cooped up all alone in her castle out of fear for her well-being. "Hey, Musica," he called, a sudden thought coming to him, "how come all this royal people are comin' to see me?"

Musica looked up from his own plate, obviously having been lost in his own thoughts. "Huh? Oh, well, it's sort of…tradition for royalty to come and see the crowning of a new King or Queen. And with the last King going M. I. A. for so long, this is a real treat for all of us. Though, there shouldn't be too many others coming along…just Queen Reina, King Haja, Queen Jiero, King Medigo, King Uta, and King Doryu," he said, ticking the names off his fingers. Haru felt a sudden flip of his stomach that had him drop his fork in shock.

"Th-that many?! Why is this such a treat to see?!" he asked, groaning and holding his head in his hands, "I don't have a clue how to act around people like that…God, they're all gonna think of me the same way that bastard Lucia does."

The older one laughed, shaking his head. "Nah. Well, not all of em'. Let, Julia, and me are definitely the most lax or the main powers, but Celia and Reina aren't too bad either. Mostly, it's Lucia, Jiero, Haja, Doryu, and Uta that are super pompous," he said casually, "Besides, as soon as you start training with Shiba you'll be better than any of those idiots when it comes to strength."

Haru looked up gloomily, still not quite believing him, "Is Shiba really that good? I mean, I've heard that's he's like, the Sword Saint or something, but is there honestly no one in the world better than he is?" he asked, straightening up again and taking a swig from his cup. Musica smirked at him, spearing a piece of meat with his fork and pointing it at him.

"Put it this way; neither the King of Raregroove or King or Symphonia could beat him in a fair fight. The only time he ever lost was during his own training with King Gale. Now? He hasn't lost once in ten years, and he's only twenty six," he explained, popping the fork into his mouth happily.

Haru's jaw dropped. "And I have to train with him?! I'm gonna get killed!" he cried out, throwing his hands into the air. "I mean, he might as well have just killed me on the spot when he found me!"

The older one waited patiently for him to finish before answering. "Trust me, he goes easy the first couple weeks, I heard. After that, he gets pretty serious. Once you have all the basic stuff down, the two of you will spar to train," he said simply, sighing and standing up, "Any more questions, dude? I'm beat."

"Nah, go ahead and get some sleep. I'll see you tomorrow for breakfast, right?" the younger prince asked, turning around in his chair to be polite.

Musica laughed again, nodding his head. "Probably, since Julia never lets me sleep as late as I want," he said airily, waving as he exited the room. Haru chuckled to himself, turning back to his plate and picking it at for a few minutes, lost in thought once again.

However, he wasn't gone for very long; shortly after Musica's departure, the door opened once again, and when Haru turned around, he was rather surprised to see the woman who had woke him up this morning; Belnika. "Hey, Belnika," he said cheerfully, waving at her. She blinked in surprise, her pale face flooding with color.

"Prince Haru-sama! I-I thought you would be in bed by now," she said softly, freezing in her tracks. Haru grinned at her happily, gesturing to the table in invitation to eat. "O-oh, no thank you, sir. I just came down to clear the tables, but since you're not finished…"

The prince jumped up, shaking his head. "No, that's cool! I'm all done, so you can go ahead and do your job," he said with a wife smile, "Can you just tell me which way to get back to my room?"

Belnika's face flooded with color again, but she nodded eagerly. "O-of course!" she said, giving him the best directions possible back to the upper north wing, even using hand motions to help. Haru grinned happily, squeezing her shoulder gently as he passed to show his appreciation to her. Closing the door to the dining room behind him, he continued on his way, following Belnika's directions carefully, word for word. Much to his relief, Haru found himself in his bedroom some ten or fifteen minutes later, sighing.

"Now, to rest up for tomorrow," he mumbled, scowling into the darkness at the pain in his foot as he made his way over to the bed, swapping the tunic and pants for a pair of silk pajamas, colored light blue, with buttons down the shirt and a drawstring around his waist. Yawning, he climbed into the bed and stared up at the canopy ceiling, thinking inexplicably of that girl he had met earlier, Elie.

There was no question about it, there was something different about her. Maybe the way she seemed so out of place compared to all of those around her, as if she had just come crash landing from a far off planet. Well, she did say she just moved to Symphonia from another country, he reminded himself, rolling over. And, I'll see her Saturday, so I can ask her more about herself. With that thought, he closed his eyes and contentedly fell into slumber.

As he had yesterday, Haru found himself awake with the sun, though this time without the scuffling around his room. Slowly, he sat up and stretched, closing his eyes tightly. "'Mornin'," someone said cheerfully from across the room, startling him so much, he nearly fell out of bed.

Haru snapped to his right, eyes wide at his guest. "Julia, what are you doing in my room?!" he demanded, extremely grateful that someone had left out pajamas for him this night. She grinned at him happily, dressed in a simply white dress with no jewelry visible on her body.

"I just wanted to come in and say good morning to you. You know, before Shiba kills ya' today," she said happily, laughing. Haru's face paled, but he quickly looked away before she could say anything about it. "That, and Dalmatian mentioned how hopelessly lost you've been getting. In your castle? Wow, Haru," she added with a smirk. Haru glared at her for a second before swinging his legs over the bed and standing back up, glancing at the door. "Looking for Sonya? If you hurry, you'll beat her."

Haru rushed towards the bathroom, closing and locking the door behind him with a loud, "Thanks!" to Julia before turning to the tub and turning the bath water on. Yesterday, he hadn't had time to really notice the beauty of his own personal bathroom, but now…it was stunning. The walls were a perfect shade of white, with abstract designs decorating them in dark blue. The wall opposite the enormous tub was covered by a mirror that could have easily fit in everyone Haru had met the past several days in it, from head to toe. The tub itself was porcelain white, standing on two golden legs with two golden knobs, and one faucet. A large counter with several sinks and various decorations was pushed against the wall opposite from Haru, with golden knobs and faucet as well.

"Wow," he breathed again, turning the water off in the tub as it reached about midway up. Slowly, he lowered himself in the tub, sighing in relaxation. Unfortunately, his relaxation only lasted for several minutes; obviously, Sonya had a key to the bathing room, and she was quickly bustling on in, scrub brush ready in hand. "S-Sonya!" Haru cried out, sliding down deeper in the water rather fearfully.

The woman pointed the brush at him accusingly, the tip of its' bristles tickling his nose. "You think you're so clever, sneaking in here before me, eh?" she asked menacingly, but there a smile on her face, "Sorry, deary, but it's my job to make sure that you're presentable to the masses, and that's exactly what I'll do." That being said, she set to work, which included the same treatment as before, only with a little less scrubbing. The woman had done her job well yesterday morning, Haru soon realized.

As she had yesterday, Sonya handed him the soap and brush, gesturing to a stack of clothes and bidding him farewell. Haru sighed as the door closed, washing around the areas that Sonya had – thankfully – missed. When he was finished, he yanked the plug out of the water and got out, grabbing the nearest towel and wrapping it around his waist as he dried off his hair. Once his body was dry as well, he pulled on the outfit waiting for him, and stared at his reflection; it was a loose fitting white button down shirt and worn feeling brown pants.

"Sonya must know what my schedule is or something," he muttered, grabbing a nearby comb off the counter and running it through his hair, ignoring how it refused to lay flat. Quietly, he exited the bathing room and looked around for Julia and, after seeing that she had left him to find his own way, he turned and headed towards the door leading to the antechamber. Rather excited, the prince left his room and began to head towards the kitchens, taking Belnika's directions and inverting them in order to find his way. Within just minutes, he had found the ornate dining hall and quickly entered.

At the table sat Celia, Lucia, Let, Julia, and Musica. "Do you guys have any idea when Reina's gonna get here?" Musica was asking, just swallowing whatever had been in his mouth. Julia's eyes gained that gleam that Haru had come to recognize as one she had whenever something amusing had crossed her mind.

"Ooh, why do you care about when Queen Reina gets here, Musica?" she asked teasingly, leaning forward at him. Just as Musica was about to retort with something – probably in some form of 'shut up!' and by throwing something at her – Celia looked up and met Haru's eyes, her whole face going red.

"Haru-chan!" she cried happily, waving. Immediately, everything stopped and all eyes turned on him. Uncomfortably, Haru closed the door behind him and waved back, slipping into a seat next to Let and smiling at everyone.

Across him, Lucia paused in his eating to gaze over him. "What a…ah, there really just are no words good enough to describe that outfit, Prince Haru," he said lightly, the taunt clearly visible. Not wanting to deal with the blond bastard, Haru simply ignored him and began to slowly take some of the breakfast foods and pile it onto his plate, glancing at Musica with a look that clearly told him not to mention his dinner incident yesterday.

"Good morning everyone," he said happily, taking a bite of the slightly steaming sausages he had grabbed. Celia blushed, giggled, and waved at him before quickly biting on some toast.

"Shiba-sama is waiting for you on the grounds whenever you've finished your meal, Prince," Let said, nodding his greeting. Haru nodded back, increasing the size of his bite and speed in order to get done faster. "Did you sleep well?" the King asked casually, taking a long drink from his cup.

With all eyes on him again, Haru swallowed. "Yeah, thanks for asking," he said, grinning at him. The chatter around him picked up again, with only Celia and Lucia remaining out of it; both watching him carefully.

"Haru-chan, you aren't busy tomorrow, are you?" Celia asked, batting her eyelashes on him. It took Haru several seconds of chewing to remind himself that he was in fact busy tomorrow, but he gave no indication of this, instead taking his sweet time chewing and swallowing what was in his mouth.

When he had finally swallowed the last of it – and took a long drink to give himself more time – he turned to her fully and smiled. "Unfortunately, I am. But, I'm completely free on Sunday," he said quickly, smiling at her. She grinned happily, clapping her hands together.

As she was answering, Lucia snorted slightly and Haru felt the great urge to stick his tongue out at him. "That's wonderful! Will you spend it with me? I really want to get to know you, Haru-chan," she explained, batting those beautifully blue eyelashes at him. Haru blushed himself, not tearing his eyes away from Celia as he nodded, wiping his mouth with his napkin.

"It would be my honor," he said happily, standing up. "I apologize for cutting this so short, but I wouldn't want to keep Shiba-sama waiting," he explained, turning to leave. Lucia stood as well, stopping him in his tracks. The other four looked up in surprise as well as the two princes stared into the others' eyes, electricity forming in the air.

Lucia's mouth stretched into a slow smirk, and he shrugged, "May I join you? I am rather curious as to this 'Sword Saint's level." Haru stared at him for a moment longer before slowly nodding, glancing at Musica for a second before heading off, Lucia in step next to him.

Thankfully, Haru found that the golden prince spoke a lot less when he had no audience to taunt Haru in front of, so conversation was absent as the two made their way out of the castle and onto the grounds towards the figure that was Shiba some several yards away. "Finally," he said curtly, but with a smile. His green eyes didn't wave from Haru, but the prince could tell he would be questioned about his company later. "I want to see if you have any skill with a sword before actually training. Who knows; some people are just naturally talented," he explained, tossing a long sword to the prince. Catching it uncertainly, Haru pulled the sheath off and stared at it in wonder. None of his tools had ever shone in the sun, but this sword was bright and wonderfully clean.

Another snort from their rather unwanted guest brought Haru back to reality, and he slowly gripped it with both hands and took a stance, eyes narrowed. "Ready," he said to Shiba, who hadn't even moved. Then, without warning, Shiba lunged forward, pulling an incredibly large sword off his back and slashing down at Haru.

With reflexes Haru hadn't known he had, he narrowly avoided it, jumping back about two feet. Indifferently, Shiba followed up with a sideways slash, which cut through Haru's shirt. The wind tickled his stomach, but Haru felt no pain at all, so he had managed to narrowly avoid that one as well.

Several minutes passed, and the prince found that his luck had gone into those two first swipes; in the ten minutes the entire battle took, he didn't even come close to hitting Shiba, but had been knocked backwards, knocked sideways, kicked forward, and had torn his shirt into shreds. His back was aching from where Shiba had flung him on the ground, and when the battle was finally declared over, his masters' foot was on his chest, and the huge sword had come crashing into the Earth next to Haru's right ear.

"Not bad," he said slowly, grinning at him, "Not even a drop of blood. Your defense is what you seem to have natural ability in. The offense, however, will need quite a lot of work."

Silence fell over Haru as he digested this. "Cool," he finally said with a fake grin that Shiba didn't seem to catch, "There isn't any fun in being amazingly good at something."

What Haru had meant to say was something more along the lines of; "Can I go back to the farm now, please?"

~x~

Author's Note: I AM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG. There was a lot of…er, well, it was kinda hectic over on my end of the internet. Again, I'm sorry, and I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. (:

Next one will be up (hopefully) a lot sooner than this one was!

Thanks for reading~


	6. Chapter 6: Early Weekend Fun

Upside Down

~x~

Author's Note: Again, I am SO sorry the last chapter took so long to be posted. Finished it and sent it into my wonderful Beta a lot later than I had hoped…again, SORRY. Ton of things going on over here, which included me getting kicked off the computer after only being on for a little bit and a ton of crap with some friends. Sigh. Things are all good now, though!!

Anyways, this chapter's going to be split up into two very important events. You'll see what they are later~ Enjoy!

By the way, Notorious; I refuse to accept that I might possibly have a bathroom fetish. And, just to prove this point…well, you'll see. :P

~x~

**Chapter Six: Early Weekend Fun**

Shiba took his foot off of Haru and held out his hand, stabbing his sword into the ground next to his leg. "Don't worry; we won't start working on offense until next week. For now, I'm just going to work on your…form," he explained with a smile. As soon as the prince was off the ground and brushing himself off, Shiba turned towards their guest finally, green eyes narrowed in poorly hidden distaste. "Prince Lucia," he said slowly, "to what do I owe the honor of your overseeing?"

The blonde smirked at him. "I merely wanted to see if all the tales of your skill were true," he said simply. Haru glanced at Shiba and gasped slightly; he would have never expected such rage to be able to line the mans' features as it was now.

"What I teach Prince Haru is none of your business," he said slowly. Lucia's smirk did not leave his tanned face but rather, it seemed to widen. "Prince Lucia, I will only ask this of you one time. Leave. Or I shall have no other option but to use force, something you do not want to witness," the older one said, not even a wisp of kindness in his cold tone. Lucia's eyes widened for a second before narrowing his anger.

Just as he was turning, he paused to glare at them both. "Mark my word, Prince Haru," he spat, "you and I shall have a duel. And when we do, your precious Knights of the Blue Sky won't be around to protect you." Threat given successfully, the blonde turned on his heel and stalked off the grounds, leaving Haru with a slight shiver.

"Wow. Can't imagine what I did to piss him off, but he really just doesn't like me, huh?" Haru asked slowly, laughing nervously. Shiba sighed, shaking his head.

"Tensions between Raregroove and Symphonia have always been high. I suppose the death of their King by the hand of ours just made that worse," he explained shortly, turning away. The prince watched him for a little bit before following, gasping for more air. "We won't be walking long, just to a small little cabin on the grounds," the older one explained with a slight smile.

Several minutes elapsed as they walked, the silence broken only by Haru's heavy panting. "For a farmer, you're really out of shape," Shiba commented with a sly smile, stopping by a small cabin about a third of a mile away from where they had been standing.

Haru scowled at him. "I just had the crap beaten out of me," he whined, doubling over. The older one laughed, grabbing his hands and holding them over his head, keeping him balanced at the same time. "What are you doing, Shiba?" the prince asked slowly, staring at him in confusion.

"If you double over like that, it's harder to breathe. Raising your arms will help you regain the wind a lot faster," he explained cheerfully. Deciding not to comment on that logic, Haru stayed in that position for a minute before pulling away fully and grinning at him.

"I can breathe again!" he cried out happily. Shiba grinned at him, and gestured to the cabin's door, signaling that they should enter now. Haru nodded and rushed over to it, opening the door and holding it open for himself and Shiba to enter. The raven haired man nodded in slight thanks and entered, waiting for Haru to enter and close the door before lighting a candle.

Much to the prince's immediate disappointment, the room consisted of nothing but empty space. One window was off to the far side, covered by blinds. A single candle flittered from where Shiba had placed it, but the light didn't matter much; the room was dull and no amount of lighting could change that.

"Oh. Uh, nice…room," Haru said politely, sighing. Shiba laughed at him, going to the center of the room and sitting down cross-legged. The prince followed him, sitting across from with the candle in the middle. Shiba watched him intently, waiting for some change obviously. "Shiba, I'm sorry, but I think I'm missing the point of what we're going here," he admitted uncomfortably, fidgeting slightly.

Shiba's face broke into a wide grin. "Good. Test one, passed. You're absolutely right; there is almost no visible point to us sitting in this room. But, we are. Can you guess why?" he asked, leaning forward slightly.

Slightly distracted by the flickers across his face from the candle, and the shock of passing an unknown first test, Haru took several seconds to process the question. "Well," he said slowly, "you said that you didn't want Lucia to see what was going on, so…we're here because you think he'd spy on me. But," he added quickly, interrupting the older one, "there's some other reason in here. Some sort of tradition, or familiarity, or the room's got some sort of hidden message in it that I'm gonna have to guess."

"Test two, passed. All of the above; I don't want that idiot Prince to see what I'm going to teach you, this is the same place your Father was taught his skill and then later passed onto me, so it's both tradition and a sense of familiarity for me. Also," Shiba said, straightening up and closing his eyes, "there is a message in this room. And even if I had any desire to tell you what it is, I'd be lying to you. The message comes differently to everyone, so keep it in your heart." Haru stared at him for a while, eyes narrowing in concentration.

"That can't be right," he said softly, causing Shiba to open his eyes indifferently. At that moment, Haru realized that the tests would be sudden and that Shiba would show no emotion regardless of whether Haru was taking a test or not. It unnerved him, but Haru pushed on, "If everyone keeps their message secret, how could they possibly know whether they all got the same thing or not?"

Shiba watched him for several more seconds, causing the prince to believe that he has failed the third test. "Test three, passed. You're right, again; no one speaks of their message and therefore it can't be proven whether or not we all received the same one or not. Yet, for the sake of individuality, wouldn't you rather say that the message you'll receive is different from mine? Or your Father's?"

The prince considered for a few minutes, staring into the flame. "No," he finally said, shaking his head, "I'd be proud to have received the same message as my Father, or you even."

For several minutes, the two sat in silence. The first half of it, Haru simply watched as Shiba say completely still with his eyes closed. However, the idea came to him that maybe he was supposed to be doing the same, and quickly closed his own eyes, staring into the nothingness behind his eyes.

At first, he was extremely bored. Staring into nothingness, sitting completely still…how could there possibly be fun with that? Soon, however, he began to stop questioning whether or not this was going to be over soon, and fell into a very relaxed state. All worries of his father, Lucia's immediate and intense dislike of him, and even fretting over the beautiful Princess Celia vanished. Within seconds, his mind was completely blank.

Just as he was about to get completely lost in the void, a face began to form in his mind. It was too blurry to distinguish, so Haru waited patiently for it to clarify. Very slowly, the face gained a heart shape, with straight chocolate brown hair, and round, innocent eyes that matched. Amazement settled over Haru; that was…Elie?

"Haru," Shiba said, breaking his concentration. The prince opened his eyes, staring at the swordsman in blank surprise. The light from the candle was gone, and it appeared that several hours had passed from when they had entered. A feeling of light headedness appeared in Haru, and it soon became apparent that it was due to the hunger rumbling in his middle. "Haru, I'd like you to tell me what you saw."

The prince leaned forward, clutching his head in his hands. "I saw…at first, I saw all my worries…my dad, Lucia, and Ce-something else," he changed quickly, not glancing up, "but then everything vanished. It was like…all my worries just disappeared," he said slowly, looking up finally, "And then, I saw the face of this…girl that I had met. I went down to the village the other day, after meeting Lucia and Celia, and I ran into this girl. She said that she was new to Symphonia, and she didn't really know the village very well, so I told her I'd go back down tomorrow and show her around the village."

Shiba studied his expression slowly. "That's very…" he said, pausing as he tried to pick out the best word for it, "peculiar." Haru nodded in agreement, wrapping an arm around his stomach. "You were meditating for quite some time, Prince. I'll take it you're hungry?"

"Starved. Were you…meditating with me the entire time?" Haru asked, standing up slowly and steadying himself. Shiba didn't answer, instead just picking up the melted candle and leading the way out, closing the door behind him carefully. Haru watched him in slight exhaustion, not bothering to ask why he was doing that; to keep out unwanted visitors.

Finally, the Sword Saint turned back to him. "No, I left as soon as I realized that you had passed into relaxation. I just got back in, actually," he explained, leading the way. Haru stared at him sideways for a few seconds before deciding that it didn't matter whether he had stayed and meditated with him or not. "Next week, we'll start working on your swordsmanship. Today was just a…pre-lesson, I suppose," he continued.

Haru didn't answer, too focused on his immense hunger to really register what he was saying. "Works for me," he finally said, grinning at him. Shiba returned the grin, but it seemed to be rather forced. "Is…everything alright?" he asked nervously, stopping at the entrance of the door. No guards were nearby, but that didn't really bother Haru too much.

"There's been a…situation. In a much smaller country, some hundred miles away the princess was…well, she's gone missing. It's been several weeks since the last time any of her guards have seen her; they just thought that she was in her room, but, judging by the dust and silence in her room, it's been more than just a few days since her disappearance," he explained warily. Haru froze, his mind automatically jumping to Resha Valentine; hadn't she gone missing recently? "Anyways," Shiba continued, "this girl is probably the most important royalty in the entire world, no offense towards you. If she's found by the wrong person, it could prove catastrophic. And the other Knights – not just the ones here; from all over – are going to begin a quest to search for her, and…many of them want my help. Not just my help, Clea, Dalmatian, Alpine, and Deerhound as well."

For several seconds, Haru let his statements linger in the air, wrapping around them. "Looks like I jumped into this world at just the wrong time, huh?" he said softly, grinning at him. Shiba looked confused for a second before smiling as well, shrugging.

"So it would seem. Do you need help finding the dining hall? Dalmatian mentioned that you can't seem to navigate the castle," he asked, smirking at the prince, who stuck his tongue out immaturely at him. Deciding to show him that he could make around the castle by himself, he waved to his friend and hurried off, forcing any thoughts of the day to the back of his mind.

The next morning, the prince found himself awake maybe two hours later than he had been the previous days. Yawning, he sat up and looked around, seeing no Julia or Sonya in his room. For a few seconds, he sat there in his bed, marveling at the beauty of his bedroom. "Good morning, Prince," a serious voice said from his right, startling him. Haru turned quickly, seeing Let standing against the wall, arms crossed.

"You and Julia have a thing with watching people sleep, don't you?" Haru accused sleepily, stretching. The king smirked, shrugging slightly.

Let waited patiently for his stretch to end. "You've made plans for the weekend, correct?" he asked indifferently, giving nothing for Haru to lean towards. The prince stared into his eyes for a few seconds in a failed attempt to try and see where this was going before finally nodding slowly. "Then you should know that your Sunday plans may well be cancelled," he finished.

"What?!"

The king stared at him with a slight hue of amusement, as if his anger had been expected. "Several of the royal powers will be arriving tomorrow afternoon: King Medigo, King Uta and Queen Reina of the Southern countries; and King Doryu, King Haja, and Queen Jiero of the Northern countries," he replied slowly, watching the prince's reaction.

Haru gaped at him for several minutes, unable to speak. "Wha-what?" he finally squeaked out, his heart racing. "I'm not ready to meet all these people! I was hardly ready to meet you guys, and Lucia, and Celia!" he cried, throwing his hands in the air.

"I know that," Let replied calmly, bowing his head, "I was against it myself. It is far too soon for you to be thrown into a world which you knew not you belonged in. But, that is why I came to meet you this morning." Haru looked at him in confusion, his question written clearly on his face. "Julia, Musica and I have spent the nights since we knew that you had been found discussing what needs to be done. There was one solution that was brought up, but it was simply too…forward, so it was put aside. However, Musica brought it back to our attention again last night, and our decision has been made. Now, all we need is your approval, Prince."

The prince blinked in surprise. Never before had someone come to ask him for his final approval in something, at least not something that was obviously important. Before he could speak, however, Let continued, "Julia and I will have to leave as soon as you've been crowned King. Against our better judgment, Prince Musica would like to ask for your permission to remain behind. He is good in heart, and can handle himself when it comes to the stickiness of politics and treaties and possible wars. He will be a valuable asset to you, being so young and innocent to the ways of your heritage."

Haru was silent, unable to do anything more than open and close his mouth. "I…wow. I mean, that's a…" he managed to get out, biting on his bottom lip to stop himself from rambling. "I'd be…honored to have Musica stay with me. I could definitely use his help," he said finally, grinning at Let happily.

"Are you…sure, Haru?" Let asked quickly, his eyes darkening, "Did you stop to consider that this might be a ploy from Makai in order to take control of both the east and the west?"

The prince glanced at him briefly before looking down at his hands. "No, I didn't," he said slowly, "but, I don't need to. Musica's my friend, and I don't think Julia would lie to me. At least…not after the whole, you know, pretending to be a bathing lady."

Let stared at him so intensely that Haru was forced to look back up. "And what about me? How do you know that I wouldn't want to take control of Symphonia?" The prince grinned at him, shrugging.

"Because you seem like a really honest kind a guy. The kind of person that would help the enemy if you thought it was an unfair fight," he told him simply, kicking off his covers and swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. "Besides, if that's what you guys really want, then as soon as I'm all done training with Shiba, I'll just show you guys a piece of my mind!"

To say that Haru's statements had shocked Let was an understatement; he looked at the boy as if he had never seen anything so simple before in his life. His coal colored eyes had gone wide in shock, and he turned away as if about to leave. "You…have the same mentality as your father, Haru. Whether it shall end the same as King Gale's has, I cannot predict," he finally said, swiftly leaving. The prince watched the closed door for a few seconds before sighing and going to the wardrobe. Deciding today that he didn't need one of Sonya's killer baths, he was going to dress himself.

"Prince Haru-sama?" a soft voice came from behind him, startling him as he reached for the handle of one of the drawers. He turned around and saw his personal servant standing next to a slightly opened door. He grinned at her, waving.

"Good mornin', Belnika," he said cheerfully. "Can you…help me out? I'm goin' down to the village, and I don't really want all the people I grew up around feeling uncomfortable around me now," he said after a slight pause, laughing nervously. The girl nodded quickly, rushing over to his side and pulling open a drawer. After a second of fiddling with the contents – Haru couldn't see what they might be, deciding to let Belnika do her job – she pulled out a plain white tunic and black trousers, similar to what Haru had been wearing the day Shiba found him.

With shaking hands, she held the outfit for him. "These are…your previous clothes. Sonya and I washed them the best we could for you," she explained, blushing greatly. Haru grinned at her, throwing the outfit over one shoulder.

"Thanks a lot, Belnika! This will be perfect!" he said happily, rushing over to the bathroom, waving at her from behind. She waved back slowly, disappearing from view as soon as Haru had closed the bathroom door.

As quickly as he could, he yanked off the silky pajama's that had been laid out for him, and pulled on his familiar clothing. "Wow, this really does feel a lot better than before!" he said happily, grinning at his reflection and pulling a comb through his bedhead. Once he was satisfied with his looks, the prince dashed from the room, grabbing a small bag of coins he had filled the night before, proceeding to run through the castle halls, skipping over the dining hall and heading right to the grounds.

Haru couldn't explain it, but he was incredibly excited to go back to the village and see Elie. On the grounds, he hesitated; how long would he have to run if he didn't bring a horse? Biting down on his lip, he jogged to the front gates of the grounds, and waved at the guards. "Good morning, Prince Haru," they said in surprise as they saw him approach. "Are you going down the village?"

"Yep!" he said cheerfully, walking right past them. They exchanged a look of surprise, and began to say something to dissuade him, but Haru had already taken off, running as fast as his muscled legs would take him down the long road to the village. It sloped downwards, which was fine for now, but Haru had a feeling that running back up would be a challenge. He grinned, deciding that it would be just another test; sprinting up the long road to the castle.

By the time the village was in sight, Haru was running only because his legs wouldn't stop. The slope had begun to control him, and the prince knew he wasn't going to be able to stop until he reached a straighter road. Happily, he jumped into the village, losing his footing and falling on the dirt road and rolling slightly. "Ah!" he cried out as he rolled, closing his eyes. Just as he was slowing down, he stopped suddenly, having swerved off the road and hitting a tree. "Ouch!" he moaned, holding his head dizzily.

"Haru…?" an amused voice asked from his far left. Automatically, Haru looked up to see who had called his name, but the entire world was spinning too fast for him to really focus on any one thing. He could tell that someone was walking towards him, but whoever it might be was impossible to see clearly.

The person sat down next to him, and waited patiently for his dizziness to end. "Hiya, Elie!" he said cheerfully, grinning at her. Like last time, she was wearing a simply brown dress, but this time she had a silver necklace around her creamy neck. A silver heart dangled from it, and when the wind blew, Haru could see some writing on the back of it.

"You know," she said cheerfully, grinning at him, "you're lucky that you didn't kill yourself right there." Haru laughed, nodding in agreement. Elie smiled back at him, holding out her hand to help him up.

"I didn't realize I would keep going if I jumped," he retorted, brushing himself off. Elie rolled her eyes, but continued to grin at him. "Anyways, how have you been?"

The girl shrugged, placing her hands behind her back. "Pretty good. Since you said that you'd show me around the village, I've made Sieg go out and do all the shopping, so I wouldn't get familiar with it before today," she told him, turning around and waving at someone on the street. Haru stared at her in worried amazement.

"Um, Elie…you know, you didn't have to do that," he told her, rubbing the back of his neck. Elie laughed, turning back around and grinning at him happily.

"I know, but I did anyways. Come on! I want you to meet someone!" she said, grabbing his wrist and pulling him with her. Haru's eyes widened, but he kept pace with her easily, apologizing to anyone that they nearly trampled. Elie stopped them in front of a tall man with long blue hair, and violet eyes. By his left hand was a much smaller boy with light blond hair and eyes the same color as the others. "Sieg, Niebel, I want you to meet my friend, Haru! He's gonna show me around the village!" Elie introduced, pushing him forth.

The taller one, which Haru assumed had to be Sieg, gazed down at the prince indifferently, but with an underlying emotion that Haru couldn't quite place. "H-hi there," he said nervously, waving. The little one, Niebel, grabbed onto Sieg's long white coat and hid mostly behind it, gazing up at the prince in one of those childhood pouts. "Er, I'm Haru Glory. I've lived in this area my entire life, so when Elie said that…she didn't really…know her way around, I…uh, I offered to show her…around," he continued, feeling the color in his face rise.

Sieg continued to gaze at him for a moment longer before flickering to Elie. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Haru," he finally said in a deep voice. "And, although it's rude of my foster son and I, we must be on our way." Niebel nodded, running behind Sieg and hugging Elie's legs briefly before returning to his previous stance. "Please try and keep out of trouble, Elie," the older man said, sounding slightly weary.

The brunette nodded at him, grinning happily, "Yep!" she cried. Awkwardly, Haru watched as they began to walk away, only the younger one looking back. "So, what do you wanna do today?" Elie asked him bubbly.

"Huh? Oh, well…uh, I could take you to Gemma's place," Haru suggested, smiling down at her. She looked up blankly at him, causing him to laugh. "Come on, I'll show you," he said, reaching to grab her wrist but grabbing her hand. However, the two had already started to move, so it was too late to fix it.

The walk to Gemma's Café – called Café Tsubomi – took only five minutes, but Elie kept the two of them entertained by keeping up a constant conversation. When the two reached the café, however, she instantly silenced, suddenly going nervous. Haru released her hand, holding the door open for her and bowing his head. Elie giggled, curtsying and slowly entering with Haru right behind her.

A large bar dominated the room, but other tables and chairs were littered across the room. Despite being mostly a bar, the room was brightly lit, with light wooden walls and floors. Several people were around the café, eating a late breakfast. Behind the bar stood a tall man with very pronounced cheekbones and raven colored hair cropped short. His eyes were very narrow, almost invisible from where Haru and Elie were standing. "Haru! It's been a while! Come on in, take a seat!" the man called, laughing loudly. Elie's eyes widened in slight amazement at his laugh, but Haru simply nudged her and led her to the bar. "Ooh, you brought a lady friend along, did you?"

"No, it's not like that, Gemma," Haru denied with a laugh, sliding onto one of the stools. Elie followed suit, smiling at him pleasantly. "This is my friend, Elie. Elie, this is one of my closest friends, Gemma," Haru introduced, leaning on the bar.

Gemma took a break in cleaning one of his cups to shake her hand. "Nice to meet you," he said politely, turning back to Haru, "You want the usual? If you can actually pay, I mean," he said playfully, laughing softly. Haru rolled his eyes, digging through his little bag and pulling out two silver coins, slapping them down on the bar.

"Two of your best, nonalcoholic drinks!" he ordered loudly, smirking. Gemma laughed loudly, putting down the cup and going back to rummage through his materials, mixing the drinks.

Elie watched him for a bit before looking around. "Nice place, eh?" Haru asked happily, grinning at her. She looked back at him, blinking for a second before nodding and smiling back. "So," he asked casually, "where did you used to live before you moved to Symphonia?"

"Huh?" she asked, lost in thoughts, "Oh, right. It's this really tiny country called Elie Village, even though it's a lot bigger than a village. The entire country is just that one city, but the whole city is probably about…one and half of Symphonia City's!" she said, spreading her arms wide. Haru's eyes widened in amazement, but just as he was about to ask her, she cut him off, "My parents were really patriotic, so they named me after the country. The princess of the country was almost named Elie too, but I guess something made the King and Queen change their minds."

Haru tilted his head to the side. "What was the princess's name changed too?" he asked curiously.

The brunette hesitated for a second, looking down at her hands. "Resha Valentine," she finally said, looking back at him. The prince's eyes grew wide, and he opened and closed his mouth several times in an attempt to speak. "I can…tell you about her. If you're interested," Elie suggested, her eyebrows knitting together in blatant nervousness.

"I would…love that. I mean, I've heard a bunch of things about her the past couple days, but…well, since all the people I heard it from aren't from Elie Village, I dunno how accurate it is," he explained gratefully, laughing slightly. Elie grinned at him, but it was an odd sort of smile, as if she was about to break some sort of unspoken rule against talking about Resha Valentine.

"Alright, but you gotta promise me something, OK?" she said, holding her arm to shake. Haru glanced down at her hand briefly before returning to her eyes, taking her hand but not shaking it. "You gotta promise me that what I'm about to tell you, you can't tell anyone else. It's top secret Elie Village information, but I think I can trust you."

Very slowly, Haru nodded and shook her hand, his eyes never leaving hers. "Promise," he breathed, unaware of how his voice had dropped. Elie nodded, taking a deep breath and slowly pulling her hand back to her lap.

~x~

Author's Note: Mwuhahaha, cliff hanger! AND, this one was actually written REALLY fast, compared to past several chapters. It might have had something to do with the fact that things over on my end have calmed down. And I started writing this one before I had posted the fifth chapter. One of the two.

Alsop, expect the next chapter to go into some more details about the mysterious Resha Valentine. Or not so mysterious. More like, dramatically ironic Resha Valentine. One of the two.

Hope you enjoyed~


	7. Chapter 7: Elie Village Land of Mystery

Upside Down

~x~

Author's Note: I suppose this should go at the END of a story, but…I just want to take the time to thank every single person that's taken the time to read my story. Or anything I've written, really. You guys give me so much motivation to continue writing. (:

Thank you to every single one of you.

Anyways, I'm not entirely sure how I'm gonna break this one up…I'm thinking of maybe speeding things up a tad bit. Not entirely sure yet. We'll see how this all plans out.

Also, please excuse me for the poor names I came up with countries. Just bear with me, alright?

No more disclaimer; my Beta pointed out it isn't necessary. 8D Thanks, Weirdo.

~x~

**Chapter Seven: Elie Village; Land of Mysteries**

Once they got their drinks, Haru turned to Gemma and said lowly, "If I promise to make sure these glasses get back to you unhurt, think me an' Elie can go for a walk?" he asked, his purple eyes never leaving Gemma's narrow slits. Next to him, Elie fidgeted slightly, as if her nerves were slowly getting the better of her. Gemma's eyes widened slightly in surprise, but he quickly nodded, laughing loudly once more.

"You go, Haru!" he cheered, clapping. Haru's cheeks darkened slightly, and he quickly grabbed the two drinks. With a slight nod towards the door, he began to briskly leave. Elie followed behind him quickly, waving slightly to Gemma.

As soon as they were outside, the prince handed her drink carefully, and looked down at his hands. "Sorry about Gemma. He's a bit…well, he's really loud," he explained apologetically, briefly glancing up at her. She merely grinned, and began to head down the road. Haru watched her as he walked besides her, occasionally taking a sip of the tangy liquid.

"I know the perfect place for us to talk," Elie explained after a bit, grinning at him. Whatever nervousness she had been feeling had been wiped clean, as far as Haru could see. She took a long drink from her glass, swallowing half of it in one gulp. "Wow! That's really good!" she cried, looking at it in amazement. Haru laughed for a second before stopping short, his eyes widening in shock; a large carriage was about to pull out in front of them, and Elie wasn't paying any attention!

Immediately, and with the same unknown reflexes he had shown with Shiba, Haru grabbed the back of her dress and yanked her back, not noticing how the glasses spilled all of the flavored drink on their fronts. "Jesus, Elie!" he cursed loudly, his heart racing. He looked down at her to glare at her for not paying enough attention when he realized that the back of her head was against his chest, and it looked a great deal as if he was holding her backwards. "Uh…" he stammered, blinking down at her instead.

She remained silent for a few seconds before pushing herself off of him, glancing down at her dress. "Thanks for…saving me," she finally said slowly, grinning at him. "Sieg says I should pay more attention to my surroundings. So things like that don't happen," Elie told him, laughing. Haru nodded in agreement, grinning as well.

"Be a bit more careful, alright? Most carriages don't stop for the villagers," he said, glancing down at the two empty glasses that had dropped. Miraculously, neither of the glasses had shattered, or even cracked. "You're alright; the glasses are alright…awesome. Nothing got hurt," Haru said in relief, picking up the two glasses, "too bad neither of us really got a chance to finish em'."

Elie shrugged, clasping her hands behind her back and continuing down the road. The prince watched her for a second before hurrying to her side, the glasses clanging together slightly. Together, the two walked on in complete silence, Elie leading the way. For someone who hadn't been in the village for very long, she certainly seemed to know where she was going. Maybe she had visited the village before, but Haru doubted that.

They finally stopped by the large lake, half a mile outside of the village. "Tada! I know it's not exactly the most secret place in the world, but it's a lot better than trying to talk privately about something than in the street, right?" she said, spreading her arms wide. Haru grinned at her, setting the two glasses down on the grass before walking closer to the water, staring at the clear liquid.

"What happened to Resha?" he asked softly, deciding that beating around the bush would get them no where. "Why did she go missing?" Some feet behind him, Elie sighed deeply, but remained quiet. Finally, his impatience got the better of him, and Haru turned back to look at her, finding her sitting down against a large oak tree, stretching her legs. For a second, he remained where he was, but eventually walked over and sat down next to her, watching the girl from her right.

Another great sigh escaped her lips before she turned back to look at him. "I don't…know what happened to her. Exactly. I have the…general idea, but other than that…it's a huge mystery," she explained softly, waiting for his nod before continuing, "Anyways, you probably know that Resha Valentine was born with this amazing gift from this supposed Goddess. Unfortunately, this proved to be a lot more problematic than the Valentine family had first suspected. Because of the power, Resha's birth was really, really tough on her Mom. In the end, Queen Valentine became super frail and weak, and didn't live past her daughter's sixth birthday.

"If that wasn't bad enough, King Valentine has really limited knowledge of magic, so poor Resha never really got a chance to learn any way to control her magic. I mean, there were tons of mages and people that could have taught her, but the law in Elie Village states that no person is ever allowed to be taught magic until the age of seventeen. Resha disappeared when she was only fifteen and a half, so they think," she explained, pausing for a second to let that sink in.

Haru replayed what she had said several times in his head, his face slowly moving into a thoughtful expression. "Alright, I got that part. But, do you know why she went missing?" he asked after a bit, nodding at her.

A grin flashed across her face for a brief second before seriousness settled over her once more. "There's a lot of theories. The one that the royals are spewing out is that she left willingly to be trained in some renowned country to help her with Etherion. But, I heard something completely different from a friend of mine before I left Elie Village. And my friend's mom is a maid at the castle, so I guess you can say this is about as accurate as it can get.

"Apparently, Resha started to get a little afraid. With all the prophecies and omens and all that stuff centered around her, it really isn't that much of a surprise. The only one that Resha ever supposedly believed was this one that concerned two other people. It said that if one of the people managed to get near her and claim her as his own, or something, the world would get into a state of complete destruction, and the only way to stop this from happening was the other guy it concerned, who would rise up to save her. Anyways, it was all supposed to happen during the latter half of the year she's fifteen, so when it got to the point where she was fifteen and a half, she started to stay inside a lot.

"Naturally, she couldn't exactly stay locked up in her tower forever, so there were these…several guys that helped her escape, so she could stay completely safe from anything that might happen. They sealed her magic, and made it so that anyone trying to track her by magic couldn't do it," she finished slowly, not meeting Haru's eyes.

The prince stared into the lake for a while, pondering all that he had heard in the past several minutes. Elie's story was choppy, clearly missing hunks of important details. Yet, it seemed that she was just as confused as a peasant of Elie Village had every right to be. No words could be said that expressed exactly how Haru was feeling, so he elected to stay completely quiet.

Several more minutes passed in silence until Haru finally realized that what he should say wasn't another question, or even a comment on what Elie had said. "I used to be a farmer. For about ten years, it was me, my Mom, and my older sister Cattleya there. I guess the land had been in my family for centuries, so my Mom refused to even try and go off to school or marry into nobility. I mean, she knew how to read and write, because her Grandma taught her when she was about five, so she made sure that me an' Cattleya could read and write too," he said distantly, smiling tenderly out at the lake.

Without having to look, Haru could feel Elie's eyes on him. Before she could ask, he continued. "Then my sister got sick. We thought it was a cold, but when she started to pass out, and was burning up with fever and yet always saying she was freezing, we figured out that she had what we call the 'illness' here. My Mom sent me off to live with Gemma so that I wouldn't catch it too, and when Cattleya got better, I went back. It was great, we were all happy that she was alive and that none of the crops or livestock had died. Then…then, my Mom got sick too. This time, I didn't go to Gemma because Cattleya would need my help to nurse her back to health. Cattleya nursed my Mom while I took care of the crops."

Haru heaved a great sigh. He had told this story recently, and yet it seemed to mean more to tell it to Elie. "Cattleya got sick again. This time, I tried to nurse them back to health…but, I was so little. I didn't know what to do, and I sure didn't know how to cook or how to nurse someone the way they had been taught, so…after about being sick for about two weeks for Cattleya and three weeks for my Mom, they…died."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Elie said softly, placing a hand on his shoulder. Haru nodded, and the two lapsed into silence again. This time, it seemed to drag on, going from minutes to hours. Neither Elie nor Haru seemed to mind much, though; they both had talked so much, and shared things that maybe shouldn't have been shared that they were perfectly comfortable with sitting in silence.

Just as Elie was pulling off her shoes and dipping her feet into the water, Haru spoke again. "Tell me about yourself," he said softly, watching her. Surprised, the brunette turned back to stare at him, her brown eyes wide.

"What do you wanna know?" she asked after a second, smiling widely. Haru shrugged, leaning against a large rock on the shore and stretching out his legs. "Er, well, my parents were school teachers, so I learned to read and write really fast, as well as learning to speak a bunch of different languages," she said after a second of consideration, shrugging.

Haru stared at blankly. "Like, different languages from Symphonian?" he asked incredulously. Elie giggled, shaking her head. "Wait, there are other languages?"

Again, the brunette laughed. "Of course. Did you think that Symphonian was the universal language?" she teased playfully, sticking her tongue out at him. She laughed again, leaving Haru in a dazed silence. Just as Elie was about to say something, she stopped short, her eyes meeting his. "You…really thought that, didn't you?" she asked gently, frowning.

"Well, yeah. I was a farmer all my life. I never really had a chance to go to school, and learn about all the other countries and stuff like that," he said defensively, crossing his arms against his chest. Elie nodded immediately, pulling her feet back in from the water.

"Alright, well, I'll tell you all about em'!" she said happily, grinning at him. "Technically, there's only four different languages; Northern, Southern, Western, and Eastern. All the Western countries, for example, speak similar languages, but with enough differences to make them all a different language. Like, the language I first learned to speak sounds almost exactly like Raregroovian at first, but then it starts to sound completely different."

Haru's mouth popped open. "So, that means…Lucia and Celia and Musica and them, they all speak another language?" he blurted out. Elie gasped slightly, and the prince grabbed his mouth, turning away from her. "I mean, I know they're Kings and Queens and all that, just…you know, heard their names in town and stuff…" he rambled out, his face reddening greatly.

Elie giggled slightly, and he slowly turned back to her. "I already know you're a Prince, you know," she said casually, grinning at him. "You look too much like your dad not to be royalty." Haru stared at her openly, his jaw dropped once more. The brunette giggled at his expression, reaching forward and placing her first two fingers under his chin, lifting his mouth closed. "It's unbecoming of a Prince to let their mouth hang open," she said, her voice dropping and becoming more like Alpine's. Before he could stop himself, Haru started to laugh, and soon after Elie joined in.

"I guess trying to keep a secret from a girl that can speak a bunch of different languages was kinda stupid, huh?" he teased, nudging her slightly after they had sobered up. Elie beamed at him, nodding. "How many different languages can you speak, anyways?" he asked, leaning back on his palms lazily.

For a few seconds, Elie mentally counted, ticking off her fingers. "Well, I can speak all the major languages, so there's ten…" she trailed off, eyes narrowing in her thought, "and I can speak Eliean, so that's eleven. So, I guess I can speak eleven." Haru's eyes popped out in surprise; he had suspected maybe only three or four – but eleven? She smirked at him, and began to speak. Only this time it was much more like singing that speaking, and her accent, which was already so strong on certain words, dominated her entire voice. When she was done, she translated, "I said, 'Eleven languages really isn't all that much compared to how many my parents know, and how many Sieg Hart knows, and how many they'll teach me,' in Eliean."

"Wow," Haru breathed breathlessly, staring at her, "Is that how Raregroovian sounds like?" Elie grinned, and began to speak again, this time in a completely different language; the words sounded slightly similar, but the musical tone and sing-song way she had spoken earlier was completely gone. "That doesn't sound anything like Eliean! It's all flat, and harsher," he pouted when she had finished.

Again, Elie laughed. "I guess. The words are pretty similar though," she pointed out with a slight shrug. "Would you like to hear the others?" she asked. Immediately, Haru nodded eagerly, turning to face her fully. With an eye roll, Elie repeated the sentence eight more times, laughing each time Haru's eyes widened in shock. However, he kept completely silent, save for the occasional 'wow' that slipped out. "It's a bit…strange, you know? Being fluent in so many different languages," she said in Symphonian, shrugging.

"Strange? I think it's amazing! You could go to any of the major countries and be completely set!" he exclaimed, spreading his arms. Elie smiled again, her cheeks turning slightly pink. "Wow, I really hope Alpine or Clea or someone teaches me to speak all those languages, so I could totally show that bastard Lucia up," he said, slamming his right fist into his left hand.

Elie tilted her head to the side, blinking her large brown eyes at him. "You know King Lucia?" she asked softly, her voice suddenly going from warm and amused to guarded. Haru's eyes widened in surprise at it, and he nodded slowly, watching in silence as her expression twisted into resentment and disgust. "He's a pig. He came as a suitor for Princess Resha about a year ago – when she was only fourteen! – and as he was parading through the streets of Elie Village, he would wink at all the pretty girls. Or, so I heard; I was in school, so I didn't get a chance to see him or anything," she said acidly, rolling her eyes again.

"He's been a complete asshole to me, and I've only known him for like…three days," Haru agreed, relieved that someone felt as bitterly about him as he did. "I mean, with Musica and all the others I've met at the castle, I've got really good feelings about, even King Let. But, with Lucia…it's like, he lives to piss everyone else off," he said wearily, watching as she nodded in agreement.

"The whole country was amazed when Resha turned him down. She wouldn't even meet with him," she added, smirking, "It really pissed him off. Almost declared war on us, actually. But, he didn't, because Resha calmly explained that she had no intention of marrying when she was fourteen and would he be willing to wait until she was eighteen." Haru rolled his eyes, crossing his arms against his chest.

"Resha better not marry Lucia," he grumbled, picking up a stone and flinging it into the lake. Elie watched him with a curious expression for a second before following his gaze out to the lake. "Wanna go back to the village so I can actually show you around?" he suggested after a moment, trying to understand why her expression had suddenly gone from relatively disgusted to so sad. She looked up, the expression slipping off her face in the blink of an eye, replaced with the one she had had when speaking in all those different languages.

With a nod, she stood up and held out a hand for him. "Let's go!" she exclaimed happily, grinning at him. He grinned back, grabbing her hand and hoisting himself off the ground and brushing off his pants and tunic. Elie did the same with her skirt before bending over and grabbing the glasses on the group, rubbing off the dirt on them with her skirt.

As they started back, Haru turned back to her. "Do you know what countries Medigo, Reina, Haja, Jiero, Uta, and Doryu rule over?" he asked curiously, shoving one hand deep into the pocket of his tunic. Elie looked up in surprise, nodding.

"Well, Medigo is the King of Vulk, and even though I've never been there, I've heard that it's really…heated place. Queen Reina rules over Elnadia, which is called the land of beauty. King Haja rules over this place called Mildea, but it's a complete mystery; no one knows anything about it. Jiero rules over the lands of Désespoir, which I guess is at the very bottom of the world. King Uta is from Kampf, the land of war. And, Doryu is King of Yuugeki."

Haru nodded along, memorizing each name of the country. "What are their languages called? Like, Symphonia speaks Symphonian, and Elie Village speaks Eliean," he asked next, still watching her sideways.

Elie took a second to consider. "Well, the people of Vulk speak Vulkan; the people of Elnadia speak Elnadian; the people of Mildea speak Mildish; the people of Désespoir speak Désan; the people of Kampf speak Kamf; and the people of Yuugeki speak Yuuan," she finally said, ticking off her fingers. "You didn't ask about Makai or Mildesta," she pointed out, glancing at him, "Do you already know about them?"

The prince shook his head, shrugging, "Princess Celia, and the King, Queen, and Prince of Makai are at the castle, along with King Lucia, so I could just ask them tomorrow or something." Elie stopped in surprise, her mouth slowly popping open. Haru smirked, leaning towards her and slowly closing her mouth with three of his fingers. "It's unbecoming of a person to have their mouth hang open," he teased with a laugh. Elie giggled slightly, but still looked rather worried. "Relax. I doubt any of them would bother coming down to the village. Especially not when all the other major power's get here tomorrow," he tried to comfort, taking her arm and leading her more into the village.

"You must be one hell of a Prince to have all these royal power's coming to see you," she teased back, sticking her tongue out at him. He rolled his eyes, ignoring that and beginning to tour her around the village. As they walked down the street, Haru would point out different buildings and, occasionally, people that he found interesting. All the while, Elie remained completely silent, listening to each of his words intently, nodding here and there. Once the two had reached Gemma's pub once again, they were chatting happily, laughing here and there. "Hold on a second while I go run these back to Gemma, alright?" he said, gently taking the glasses from her. She nodded, and he bounded inside hurriedly.

At the sight of him, Gemma started to laugh loudly, leaning against the counter. "Date went alright, kiddo?" he teased, laughing louder at Haru's eye roll.

"I told you, it wasn't a date," he told him, placing the two glasses on the counter, "Gemma, there's a lot I gotta tell you about. Will you be able to meet me here Monday night, after suppertime?" he asked under his breath, peering deeply into the man's narrow brown eyes. Immediately, Gemma sobered up; he knew when the teenager was being serious.

With a slight nod, he scooped the two glasses. "Try and bring your lady friend back around, alright? I need to make sure that she's right for my little Harukins," he teased loudly, laughing that hyena laugh at the nickname that Haru's mother had called him once – while drunk, Haru always told him, a fact that Gemma refused to accept. With a bright red face, Haru ran from the pub, waving at Gemma as he did so. Elie looked up at him in shock as he nearly ran into her, not having paid attention to where he was going.

"Well, this feels a bit familiar, doesn't it?" she laughed, stepping back before he fell on top of her. Haru laughed as well, glaring at the pub before taking her arm and leading her away. She went willingly, but didn't ask any questions as to why she was being led away. "Haru, I gotta go the other way!" she finally said when they had gone about ten yards. At that, Haru froze. The sun was about halfway set; supper time. He sighed, wishing he could just take Elie up to the castle with him.

Finally, he turned back around to grin at her. "Next Saturday," he told her, "I'll come back to the village and we can hang out again." She nodded happily, started to turn away. A sudden hesitation came over her for a second before she turned back around and flung her arms around him, hugging him tightly. "Elie…?"

"Sorry," she said quickly, jumping away. With a grin, she started to take off, half waving at him, "I'll see you next week, alright? Don't forget!" That being said, she turned around and took off running quickly towards the village, leaving a stunner Haru behind. He waved back, his mouth opening and closing in an attempt to call out something to her. Unfortunately, by the time he decided on what to say, she was indistinguishable from the crowd. With a sigh, the prince turned back around and began the long ascension back up to the castle.

Unlike the run down, the run back up the castle took Haru quite some time. The sun was just touching the horizon when he finally reached the castle gate again, doubled over to try and get more air into his lungs. "Well, look who's decided to join the rest of his guests," said an icy voice. Haru glanced up, his eyes falling on a tall man some five feet away. He had long black hair, eyes the color of snow, and an air about him that would have frozen the hottest sun. The man was wearing a long black cape and a strange headset atop his head. His tunic was the same shade as his eyes, but his pants were a very dark midnight blue. When the man spoke, it was harsh

"I'm sorry?" the prince panted, straightening up. Nervously, he glanced around to see if any of the guards were around; there were none. The man stared down at him, repulsed.

"This is the replacement that those idiotic Knights of the Blue Sky dug up? He's no worse than the filth of Kampf!" he spat, sticking his nose up. Haru's eyes narrowed in recognition of the name; King Uta. Before he could say anything, however, two more people joined the group, one female and one male.

The male gave a short laugh, punching Haru's shoulder playfully. "You shoulda seen the way your Knights were freaking out when the guards told em' you had left," Musica said happily, laughing. Haru chuckled slightly, looking down at his hands.

"Uta, lay off. Haru hasn't exactly been a prince for long, as I'm sure you can recall," Julia said next, placing her hands on her hips. The man's eyes narrowed as he glared in between the two of them, shaking his head slightly. "Anyways," Julia said pointedly, turning to Haru, "Why did you go bolting off to the village? You still got business there or something?"

Haru felt his cheeks enflame. He hadn't wanted anyone to know about Elie. "I had to go down and check up on my pal, Gemma. He was kinda the dude that raised me after my Mom passed away," he lied smoothly, grinning. Julia and Musica nodded knowingly, turning their attention back to Uta, who had snorted.

"I cannot wait until Jiero, Medigo, and Doryu see this piece of filth. Obviously," he said tauntingly, gazing down at Haru once more, "the reign of Symphonia has come to standstill. Your Knights better be prepared for war." Haru's eyes widened in shock as he slowly understood what the King meant. At his expression, Uta laughed harshly, smirking down at him, "It's just a matter of time, Prince. Whether it be Kampf, Vulk, Désespoir, Yuugeki, or Raregroove I know not, but war is on the horizon."

That being said, he stalked off, leaving Haru behind with Julia and Musica with the feeling of dread overwhelming him. "Dude, Uta's always saying shit like that. Dude's war-happy. And even if any country is dumb enough to go against Symphonia, the Knights of the Blue Sky and all the people of Makai would totally have your back," Musica said immediately, draping an arm over his shoulders. "You have nothing to worry about."

"Yeah, it's not like Clea, Alpine, Deerhound, or Dalmatian are exactly weak, you know? And I'm sure you've heard about Shiba. Those five alone could take an entire army together and kick ass," Julia added, grinning at him. "Come on, let's go get some dinner, alright? Your darling Celia has been sulking around when she realized that you only planned to spend Sunday with her, and not the entire weekend," she said, turning and leaving. Musica laughed next to him, following her with Haru in toe. "Uta's the only new visitor, though. Jiero, Medigo, and Doryu won't be here until next Sunday, but Haja and Reina are due for an appearance sometime tomorrow."

Haru nodded, extremely grateful that they had been there while Uta taunted him. "One day," he said lowly, "I'm gonna be stronger than even Shiba! None of these pompous bastard's will ever mess with me again!" His vow stopped the other two short, but he continued onwards. Despite feeling their eyes on his back, Haru refused to look back, afraid that they'd lose what little respect they had for him if they saw his tears. "I'll be the strongest man in the world!"

He stopped right by the gates, wiping his eyes several times to clear his cheeks of the tears. "Damn right you will be!" Musica suddenly cried, placing a hand on his head and messing his hair up. "No friend of mine's gonna be a weakling, got it? Once you get all the basics of fighting from Shiba and Deerhound, me, Let, an' Julia will help you out," he added, laughing as Haru pulled free from his grasp. "Aw, what's wrong?" he teased playfully, "Don't like noogie's?" Before Haru could reply, Musica caught him in a headlock, clenching his hand into a fist and rubbing it against Haru's hair fiercely.

The prince struggled, but was no match for Musica's grip. "Come on, get off me!" he cried, closing his eyes against the pain of the noogie. Julia laughed at them from a few feet away, walking forward slightly and rearing back her foot. Musica paused for a second as he watched her, eyes slowly widening as he caught onto what she was about to do. Haru peeked open one eye to see as well, and watched as Julia's well-aimed foot met its' mark…right in Musica's exposed groin.

Immediately, a strange expression came over his face, and he crumpled on the ground, clutching his groin and groaning. Haru couldn't help it; he was laughing just as hard as Julia was, clutching his stomach. "Co-come on," Julia directed, beginning to job off, "you're not gonna wanna be anywhere near him when he recovers." Haru nodded, taking off after her. Once they were sure that they were far enough away, the two broke down in hysterical laughter once more, falling to the ground with tears rolling down their eyes. "D-did you…?" the Queen tried to ask, unable to get the words fully out.

Haru nodded the best he could, trying to get the image of Musica's facial expression off his mind. "Oh my God," he gasped out, turning to Julia. She looked back, and a new round of hysteria took them both over once more.

"You know," Julia said after a bit, wiping her eyes, "When Musica finds us, we're fucked."

The prince considered for a second before a wide grin spread over his face. "Yeah, I know."

~x~

Author's Note: Poor Musica. He never saw it coming. SORRY this one took so much longer than the last; my computer keeps on rejecting the very idea of having an Internet window and a Microsoft Word window open at the same time. Sigh.

Oh well. I hope that I managed to throw some humor into this chapter for you guys. Got the idea from a party I was at Friday, when someone did exactly what Julia did to Musica. Had the guy NOT been carrying me, I might have found it extremely funny…BUT, I RAMBLE.

Next chapter will be up within a week, ok~?


	8. Chapter 8: 'You Stud Muffin, You'

Upside Down

~x~

Author's Note: Bleh. This one took a lot longer than I wanted to (mostly because I got a tad distracted by something for a Club I'm active in, over on my end), but…it's here. Finally. And, now that my classes are OVER, updates should be a loooot faster than they are now. (:

Also, expect some more familiar faces in this chapter. You know, this one was actually supposed to be SMALLER than the previous ones. But, well...that didn't happen. Haha.

You've probably noticed that I've been using Japanese honorifics in this fanfiction. Well, my reasoning for that is, Rave Master is a Japanese manga and therefore the people are TECHNICALLY Japanese. Thus, the honorifics.

Enjoy~

~x~

**Chapter Eight: 'You Stud Muffin, You'**

Slowly, Haru peeled open his eyes and found himself staring directly at the large canopy above his bed. A soft groan escaped his lips as he shifted slightly, only causing pain to shoot up his legs. He rolled his head over and tried to find a position where neither leg would hurt. It soon became apparent, however, that such a feat was only possible during sleep, much to Haru's immediate despair. "Why did Musica have to hit _me_?" he asked himself softly.

After Musica had found his two friends, he proceeded to chase them throughout the grounds until finally catching Haru and punching him as hard as possible in the exact place where Julia had aimed her kick. Unfortunately, Musica's anger had gone into that one punch, and there wasn't any left to continue chasing after the much faster Julia.

"Prince Haru-sama?" a soft voice asked from his far left. Haru already knew who it was – waking up to find a friend in his room was hardly rare at this point – but he slowly opened his eyes once more and sat up, groaning again. "Prince Haru-sama, what happened?"

The prince grinned at her happily, shrugging. "Musica punched me where he knew it would hurt most," he answered nonchalantly. The maid gasped slightly, but didn't move from where she was standing. "Belnika, you don't have to be all formal and stuff. We're obviously gonna see a lot of each other, so we might as well skip all the boring formalities," he added, leaning back on his palms.

Belnika stared at him for a moment longer before looking down at her pale hands. "But, you're a Prince. And I'm just a maid," she finally said slowly, glancing back up at him. The prince shrugged, grinning at her again.

"That doesn't matter to me. I was a farm until a couple days ago," he pointed out, "I can't act like a Prince or any other kind of royalty yet, not until Alpine and them teach me everything. Besides, it makes me really uncomfortable to be around all those pompous jerks – except for Let, Julia, and Musica – anyways. I'd much rather prefer hanging out with you."

The maid's cheeks enflamed, but Haru chose to ignore it. "Th-thank you, Haru-sama," she stuttered out, all grins. He grinned back, waving away her thank you. "Maybe sometime after your lessons, I can…show you around the castle," she suggested timidly, biting down on her bottom lip nervously. Contrary to what she must have thought his reaction would be, Haru's whole face lit up and he nodded eagerly.

"That would be awesome! I mean, wandering around was working fine for me, but if someone that's actually nice to me could show me around a bit more, then I wouldn't get lost so much!" he cried out happily. On his way back up to his wing last night, the prince had somehow managed to get himself hopelessly lost in one of the downstairs corridors, being saved only when Shiba, who had been patrolling, found him and took him to the right place.

Belnika's eyes widened in shock at his outburst, but smiled back as well. "It would be my honor, Haru-sama," she said, curtsying. "But, I do believe that you have some sort of plan with Princess Celia-kun today, right?" she asked, still smiling at him. Haru stared at her blankly for a second before slowly remembering what he had promised her.

As soon as this memory crashed down on him, the prince jumped out of bed – ignoring all pain from his groin – and began to run around the room. "That's right! I totally forgot about that!" he cried out, running to one of his dresses, "Shit, shit, shit! Belnika!" he cursed, swiveling around, "I need some clothes that'll make me look really fancy and like I kind of know what I'm doing!" Her eyes went wide, and she rushed over, gently pushing him out of the way as she rummaged through the drawers for him.

Finally, she pulled out an elaborate white tunic, with blue trimming down the middle and buttons that Haru suspected were pure gold. He nodded and took it from her as she continued to rummage through for some pants. After a second, Belnika revealed thick velvet bottoms with another gold button and some swirled design on the side. Haru nodded gratefully again as he took the trousers, about to run off when Belnika stopped him.

"These are yours, right?" she asked, pulling out one ring, a chained bracelet, and two earrings from her pocket. Haru's face lit up, and he nodded eagerly as he held out his hand for her to gently drop them in. "I found them in your pockets, but I forgot to give them to you yesterday," she explained softly, blushing brightly.

The prince waved her apology away, turning to the mirror and gently pushing his earrings through the almost invisible holes in his left ear. "This is so awesome! I thought I left them back at the farm or something," he said cheerfully, grinning at her happily again. "What would I do without ya', Belnika?" he asked once the earrings had successfully been inserted in.

Before she could reply, the door to his bedroom slammed open, causing both of them to jump in shock. Haru groaned slightly, his hands automatically guarding his groin area. "Good, you're up. I was going to drag you out of bed if you weren't," Musica said cheerfully, waving. He grinned at Belnika, and sniggered at Haru's position, "Relax, dude, I'm not gonna hit you again," he said nonchalantly, walking forward. "Whoa, dude, when did you get earrings?"

"I've had em' since I was little. I took them out before Shiba found me, and I guess I left them in my pocket, so Belnika just gave em' to me," explained Haru with a slight shrug, uncoiling his hand from around the ring and bracelet and gently sliding them into place. "Much better. Anyways, can you leave?" he whined, pointing to the door he had entered from, "I gotta change."

Musica laughed, leaning against the bedframe. As he started to speak, Belnika slowly curtsied to them both and exited the room to give them privacy. "Didn't you have some hot date yesterday?" he asked curiously, crossing his hands against his chest.

The younger one rolled his eyes. "It wasn't a date. I was just showin' her around the village is all," he grumbled, starting to head off. With a laugh, Musica stopped him and pushed him back into place. "She just moved here from Elie Village, and didn't really know her way around, so I told her I'd show her around. We ended up just hanging out by the lake and talking, though," he reluctantly explained.

Silence settled over the two. "Yeah, talking. Right," he said skeptically, rolling his eyes. Haru stared at him with a dull expression for a second before turning away and heading to the bathroom.

"Either way, I'm spending the day with Celia as much as I can. I really wanna get to know her," he called back without turning around to meet his gaze. Just as he reached the door and was disappearing into the confines of the grand bathing room, he heard Musica give a soft snort. Ignoring his friend, he closed the door behind him and began to strip himself of his pajamas.

As quickly as he could, Haru changed into the outfit that Belnika had given him, trying to block out what Musica had said about spending time with Elie being a 'hot date'. "It wasn't a 'date'," he grumbled to himself, yanking the fancy shirt over his head without even washing himself off. After catching Sonya in the corridors last night, they came to an agreement; she would bathe him at night, when he would generally be too tired to put up much resistance. It seemed to be the best solution to Haru's immense dislike of being bathed, and Sonya had taken quite an amount of amusement from his suggestion.

Once he was positive that he pulled on all the garments on correctly – he had some serious trouble debating which side of the trousers was front and which was back – he turned his attention to the mirror and grabbed his comb. Desperately, he ran it through his hair and attempted it to lie flat. After several moments of struggle, he finally gave up and put the comb down and glared at his reflection. "At least I have all my jewelry," he said to himself, grabbing his toothbrush and running it underneath the sink.

Finally done with what was quickly becoming a routine, Haru exited the bathing room and cautiously looked around his room; Musica was gone. Sighing in expectance – visitors to his room never stayed too long, but they certainly appeared often enough – he tossed his pajamas on the bed and made his way to the halls with a grumbling stomach.

By the time he had managed to get to the dining hall, Haru's stomach was roaring for food. Gratefully, he pushed open the large doors and grinned widely. "Mornin'," he said cheerfully to those around the table, sitting down at the large oval table. Immediately, three heads rose, each one with a different expression on them.

"Good morning, Prince Haru-chan!" Princess Celia said first, waving her pale hand happily. As he had last seen her, her long blue hair shone like a jewel, with one of the most beautiful dresses he had ever seen gracing her pale body. She seemed slightly excited, and it was Haru's greatest wish at that moment that she was excited for the same thing he was.

The other two remained silent, exchanging a brief glance. "Good morning King Lucia, King Uta," Haru said politely, sitting down in a chair opposite the two king's, and next to the princess. They merely nodded and went back to eating their breakfast. Deciding that talking to them would only result in some taunt or jeer in his direction, the prince turned to Celia instead while piling food on his plate. "We're still spending the day together, right?" he asked her rather nervously.

Immediately, the princess nodded. "Of course! You promised that we'd go down to the city," she reminded him, grinning. Haru nodded as well, but had to stop and consider that one.

"Well, since Queen Reina and King Haja are going to be here today, maybe we should just stick around the castle," he said slowly, watching her very carefully for her reaction. While her smile slipped just a bit, it was quickly put back into place.

"Sure! There's always next weekend!" she exclaimed, spearing a piece of fruit and placing it into her mouth daintily. Haru laughed in relief, beginning to eat as well. Conversation was limited due to both of them eating – and the fact that Lucia and Uta were watching them very carefully – but as soon as they were both finished, the two took off.

As soon as they left the dining hall, Haru let out a huge sigh of relief. "I don't get why they hate me so much," he muttered to himself, shaking his head. Celia giggled, and latched onto his arm. Although his first instinct was to pull away, or tell her to stop, Haru simply smiled down at her.

"King Lucia and King Uta-kun had wanted to be the most powerful nations in the whole world, but since Symphonia found its' heir, that isn't possible anymore," she explained, and began to lead him down the hall. "They're just angry because, once you get all your training and learning's in, you'll be just as great a King as King Gale was!"

Haru laughed skeptically at her, but she didn't seem to notice. "Celia, where are we going?" he asked, helping her push open a large door. She merely giggled again, refusing to say anything more. Curious, the prince laid down multiple guesses in hopes of a reaction from her, but all he ever seemed to get was a giggle. Finally, the two seemed to reach their destination; the stables. "We're going for a horse ride?" Haru guessed curiously, frowning at her simple chuckle.

"No," she told him, drawing out the word cheerfully, "we're gonna go see the city!" Haru's eyes popped open, but just as he was about to speak, she placed a finger on his lips. "Don't worry. Reina and Haja won't be here until this evening. We have plenty of time to go down and explore the city," she said softly, her voice entrancing.

For a few seconds, Haru simply stared down at her in amazement. "Yeah, I guess," he finally grumbled, rubbing the back of his neck. Celia giggled, taking his hand and leading him into the stable. Once she stopped, considering which horse to take, Haru immediately walked over to the horse he had ridden the other day, placing a hand on its' head. "We can take this one," he explained happily. Celia studied the horse for a second before nodding, clasping her hands together as she waited for him to pull the horse out of the stable.

"Is it a boy or a girl?" Celia asked once Haru had tied the saddle on the animal. The prince stared at it for a second before ducking down to check. Some feet away, Celia roared with laughter, but Haru had done what he wanted it – he now knew its' gender.

"It's definitely a girl," he said happily, jumping onto the saddle and holding out his hand for Celia to join him. "Come on," the prince said softly, scooting back so she could be in front of him. Carefully, she grabbed his hand and jumped on, sitting sideways due to her dress. Haru carefully grabbed the reins, making sure not to squish her, but also trying to hold her in place.

Once they were all situated, the three of them took off, galloping away down the opposite side of the castle – the village and farms were on the southern, and eastern areas, while the city dominated the entire north, north-east, and part of the north-west, with some scattered farms in the west. "I've never ridden a horse with someone else before," Celia admitted, wrapping her arms around Haru's middle to steady herself. The prince tried to ignore the way her arms felt around his stomach, his face reddening.

"Me either," he admitted with a laugh, "but it looks like this horse seems to be able to carry our weight." Celia nodded, and the two lapsed into silence once more. "I brought along some money, so we can go shopping," Haru told her once they reached the very edge of the city. Slowing down, the three began to slowly trot to the city.

It was the most magnificent sight that Haru had ever seen. Buildings were everywhere, all made of sturdy looking white stone, and shining wood for window frames. People of all sorts were walking around, all dressed in what Haru soon realized was a sort of median to what he was used to – not as bad as peasants clothing, nor were they nearly as pristine as the clothing he saw around the castle – but it was the styles of the people that caught his attention. Hairdos of all sorts were visible, with all sort of different outward appearances.

"Wow…" the two breathed together, jumping off the horse and leading it into the bustling city. "Think we'll find a visitors' stable or something?" Celia asked, her blue hair blowing behind her. Haru watched her for a second, entranced.

"We should," he finally answered, looking around for anything that said 'horse' in it. After a second of looking, he finally found one off to the right; a large sign with the words 'Knight Horses' written on it. "There," he pointed out, taking her hand in his free one and leading her over there.

The stable was half the size of the one on the grounds', but Haru could tell immediately that it was a place that got little business. "What do you want?" a man asked lazily. He had a squared off nose with black hair that was brushed all to the left side of his face. "This is for the Knights of the Blue Sky only, no little brats allowed."

Haru shrugged. "Can we keep our horse here?" he asked anyways, grinning at the man. With an angry expression, the stable keeper turned to him, obviously ready to yell or attack him. As soon as his squared brown eyes saw Celia, he froze.

"P-Princess Celia!" he squeaked, his whole face going red. "Wh-why are you here? Unless…unless –!" he started to say, but was quickly cut off by Haru's hand covering his mouth.

"Keep quiet! I don't wanna the civilians to know that Celia and I are in the city, alright?" Haru hissed in his ear, waiting until the man stopped struggling to release him. "Can you just hold our horse for us? I don't think the people would take too well to a horse running around on their streets," he asked again, pulling out several silver coins.

The stable keeper gaped at him. "Y-yes, of course! Anything for you, Prince Haru!" he said quickly, snatching up the coins and taking the reins for their horse. "As soon as you come back, make sure to have one silver coin," he called out, disappearing into the stable. Haru waved at him, and turned back to Celia.

"Well, where to, Princess?" he asked, gesturing to the street. She considered for a bit, shrugging. Haru laughed, "How about we just walk down the main road, and go to whatever catches our eye?" he suggested, holding out his arm for her to take. With a slight blush on her cheeks, she took his arm and the two took off.

As they walked, Celia kept on a constant stream of conversation about…well, everything. Her hometown, her sister, her people, her dislike towards Julia and Musica, and just herself in general. Haru listened intently, never interrupting. Instead, he simply watched her talk, awed by her very voice; it seemed like she was singing rather than actually talking. "Hey, Celia," he said once he was sure that she had finished, "how many other languages can you speak?"

She looked up in surprise, her blue eyes wide. "I can only speak Mildish and Symphonian fluently, but I'm learning to speak Raregroovian, and Vulkan right now. Once I'm all fluent in those, I'll learn all the others," she replied with a slight shrug of her thin shoulders. "Why?"

Haru grinned. "Because I met this girl the other day that can speak a whole bunch of different languages," he answered cheerfully. Celia smiled back at him, but it was short lived.

"Is she from Symphonia?" she asked in a slightly clipped voice. Immediately, worry flooded into Haru. What had he said? How should he fix it?

"Nah, she moved here because her family was too _poor_ to keep her," he said nonchalantly. From the corners of his eyes, he watched for her reaction. Much to his surprise, she seemed to brighten; her smile slipped back into place, and any sort of dislike she might have had was gone.

At the same she laughed, a soft sigh of relief left Haru. "So, she's a peasant?" the princess asked bluntly. Haru's eyes narrowed, but he kept a smile plastered on his face as he slowly nodded. "Oh, that's alright then," she replied, hugging his arm tightly to her side. Haru laughed slightly, but he stared down at her in confusion.

Before he could ask what she meant by that, she pointed to a large store that was advertising all sort of assorted treats. "Ooh, Haru-chan, can we check that store out?" she asked eagerly. The prince grinned, and began to lead her towards the little shop.

As they got closer, it soon became apparent what sort of treats the store sold – ice cream. Ice cream was a valuable treat nowadays, being so rarely made by farmers. To most of them – and to Haru – it was a waste of milk that could have gone to use to a family that needed it, or for cheese or some other dairy product. Judging by the way Celia was reacting to the store, the two were of very different opinions on this subject. "Ooh, Haru-chan, look at all the ice-cream!" she squealed, tightening her grip on his arm.

"Oh…boy," Haru said in what he hoped was an enthusiastic tone. Celia didn't seem to notice, too busy fawning over all of the different flavors. "You go ahead and pick whatever flavor you want, Celia," the prince said kindly, watching her fondly.

Excitedly, she turned back to him and grinned. "Thank you so much, Haru-chan!" she cried, turning back to the clerk and placing her order. "What are you going to get?" she asked, halfway turning back around to him. The prince smiled widely, shaking his head.

"Maybe I'll get some later," he lied smoothly, handing several silver coins for her ice-cream. She simply shrugged once, still grinning, and paid for her treat. In slight disgust, Haru watched as the man scooped a large amount of the treat into a small little bowl before scooping a similarly sized second helping into it. Celia squealed at the second helping, thanking the man happily before pulling a spoon from a small jar and turning back to Haru.

As the princess and the prince left the shop, Haru couldn't help but notice just how milk must have gone into making that amount of ice-cream. From his experience with churning milk, that amount probably could have lasted him a week before he needed to put aside some of the milk he normally went up and sold for himself. "Is that…good?" he asked curiously after a bit, rubbing the back of his neck.

In surprise, Celia looked up mid-bite. "It sure is! I wish I knew how they managed to make so many different flavors of it," she replied happily, finishing up her spoonful. The prince simply laughed softly, and tried to ignore the nagging feeling about how many people might have needed that milk.

The rest of the day passed fairly quickly, with stops to almost every store that Celia liked – Haru had decided to watch what Celia liked, in case he would ever need to buy her anything – and an almost one-sided conversation from Celia. "Haru-chan," she said softly, after having just finished up a rant about something – Haru hadn't really paid much attention – her older sister had done, "you don't think I talk too much, do you?"

"No! No, of course not!" Haru cried out, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "And, even if you did talk too much, it wouldn't matter to me. I like listening to you talk, Celia," he told her happily, grinning at her.

Unlike him, Celia did not blush at that. "Thanks," she told him, leaning against him gently. "I'm so happy that we got to spend today together. And I can see you any time at the castle!"

Haru beamed down at her. "Well, any time except during my classes. I guess those are supposed to be top-secret," he corrected gently, pushing his free hand into his pocket. The princess nodded in agreement for a second before shrugging.

"Haru-chan, will you spend next Saturday with me too?" Celia asked, pulling away. Haru smiled at her apologetically, shaking his head.

"I would, but I promised my friend Gemma I'd go down to the village and explain what's going on," he lied smoothly with a shrug. "He raised me for a while after my Mom died, so I figured that I owe him an explanation," the prince added quickly in an attempt to make it sound like this was something he really needed to do next Saturday.

To his relief, Celia didn't seem to be upset about this. "Alright, then next Sunday!" she said instead, linking her arm with him and walking. Haru followed in relief, glancing up at the sky and frowning.

Reluctantly, he stopped her, gesturing to the sky. "I would absolutely love to keep on running around the city with you, Celia," he said honestly, "but, Queen Reina and King Haja will be here soon, and it would be really rude of me not to be there to greet them." The princess pouted at him, crossing her arms against her chest. "Aw, come on, Celia. I don't wanna have to leave, but I gotta," he soothed, wrapping an arm around her, "And there's always next week."

Celia sighed and nodded. "Yeah, I know. And, we'll see each other all week," she pointed out with a grin. Relief washed over Haru – again – and the two set off to the stable that they had left their horse with. As he had promised, Haru had kept one silver coin safe from the vast amounts of spending that Celia had done – the prince himself had only bought them both lunch, but Celia had bought all sorts of perfumes and jewelry for herself.

When they got to the stable, the keeper was nowhere to be seen, nor did it look like they would be able to get into the stable by themselves. "Excuse me?" Haru called into the stable, frowning. Silence followed him, and with an eye roll, the prince jumped the desk and pulled open the stable door himself. Inside was a dimly lit room, with five different holding pens. Off to the far right was their horse, and Haru quickly untied her and pulled her out. "Looks like we'll just have to leave the coin on the counter," he said to a laughing Celia cheerfully.

As soon as the coin was left on the table, Haru jumped on the horse with his hand offered out to Celia. "Care to join me, Princess?" he asked with a grin. Celia giggled and grabbed his hand, pulling herself on the horse, behind him this time, and wrapped her thin arms around his middle. Haru blushed, but pulled the reins and led the horse out of the city and back up to the castle.

When they reached the castle, the sun was just about to set. Much to his relief, no carriages could be seen anywhere on the ground that hadn't been there earlier. "I'm glad you had fun, Celia," he told her once he had jumped off the horse and put her into her pen.

"I'm glad that you came along with me," she replied, sliding off the horse. "I wish I could stay and chat, but I need to go to my room and write a letter to my older sister," she explained apologetically. Haru nodded in understanding, and the two exited the stable. Off to the distance were Julia, Let, and Musica, so the prince started to head over to them. The two waved once more at one another before the princess started heading up to the castle, and Haru down to his friends.

When he reached there, he realized that they were watching the entrance to the village carefully. "Hey, guys," he called, grinning at them. Immediately, they all turned in surprise, their eyes wide.

"Well, if it isn't the runaway prince himself!" Julia cried happily, throwing an arm around his shoulder. "You gotta start informing your Knights where you go, buddy. They throw fits when you're not around," she told him, whacking the back of his head.

In response, Haru merely laughed. "Dude, where were you?" Musica asked curiously, crossing his arms against his chest.

"I was spending the day with Princess Celia," he said with a large grin. Much to his amusement, the queen and prince gaped at him, their eyes wide as jokes formulated in their minds. "And, I'm gonna spend next Sunday with her, too." Musica whistled, and Julia laughed.

"You're a _player_!"

Immediately, Haru's amusement vanished. Musica and Julia were roaring with laughter, so he feebly turned to Let to explain. "You spent the day with Celia today, and she's very obviously interested in you; your maid, Belnika, seems to show a great interest in you as well; and you spent the day with a young lady down in the village yesterday, did you not?" he explained, a smirk decorating his face.

"I told you, it wasn't like that!" Haru cried, swiveling around to Musica. "I was just showing Elie the village, 'cause she's new here!" Much to his despair, the duo simply laughed harder, falling to the ground and holding their stomachs.

Just as Haru was about to rear back his foot to kick them both into silence, Let stopped him. "Haru," he warned seriously, "if you attack them, you will regret it." Haru sighed in acknowledgement, and waited patiently for them to stop laughing. When they had both recovered, they wrapped one of their arms around his shoulders and put their heads in close.

"Aw, calm down. We were just playing around…you stud muffin, you," they said together. Haru's embarrassment jumped up several levels, which only caused their laughter to begin once again.

Before he could attack them, despite Let's warning, Haru went into to attack them. Again, he was stopped by the king's arm. "Wait!" he cried, turning to the others, "Reina and Haja are here!" Just as Haru was about to grumble about how they were far too busy laughing to care, the two jumped up again and stared towards the village entrance, causing Haru to do the same. His eyes went wide at the sight of two elaborate carriages were pulled up to the castle. "Lets' go," directed Let, heading towards them.

Musica snorted, but all three of them followed him briskly. "Um, wait, Let…" Haru said softly, grabbing his arm and pulling him aside. The other two simply glanced at him before continuing on their way, obviously sensing his tension. "I don't…know how to act. Around people like Lucia and Uta," he started to explain, looking down at his feet, "Will…Reina and Haja be like they are?"

The king remained quiet for several seconds. "No, they won't be like Lucia or Uta. Reina is a great deal like Julia, Musica, and I. Haja is a very intelligent individual, and knows of your situation. He will be formal, but not impolite," he explained with a smile. Haru nodded gratefully, and the two took off to catch up with the others.

As soon as they got into line with them, the first carriage door was thrown open. A heavy smell of perfume trailed off, and Haru immediately knew who was going to exit. However, he was not expecting the person that stepped out of the carriage; she was tall and slender, with hair and eyes the exact same color as Alpine. She was dressed in a bright red, strapless dress, with a golden necklace around her neck. Elbow length gloves covered her hands, though a bangle in the shape of a snake was around her left arm.

"Ooh, Queen Julia and King Let!" she cried cheerfully, waving at them cheerfully. "And you even brought along Prince Musica for the ride, eh?" the woman asked, her eyes lingering on Musica for just a second. Finally, her green spheres landed on Haru, and they instantly widened. "Wow. You know, I wasn't sure whether I'd believe this heir was the real deal when I heard that Shiba had found him, but now looking at him…it's a wonder it took you guys so long to find him!"

Blush crept into Haru's cheeks, and he bowed deeply to her. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Queen Reina," he said firmly. Reina laughed, and he straightened up.

"Just head on it into the castle, Reina," Julia said casually, "someone will realize what's happened and Alpine will be alerted of your arrival." The other queen nodded, grinning at Haru once, and winking at Musica before heading inside. As soon as the door was closed, Julia elbowed Haru, "Don't be so formal with Reina. She's a lot like me."

Haru simply nodded, only half paying attention to what Julia was saying. The other carriage – which was now noticeably different than Reina's – had opened and revealed King Haja. He was the largest man that Haru had ever seen in his life, with a helmet upon his head that seemed to jut out without even touching his nose. He had a thick blonde beard and blonde hair underneath his helmet. His eyes were narrow and weary looking, but seemed to be much warmer than Lucia's were.

"Hello, King Let, Queen Julia, Prince Musica, and Prince Haru," he said in a booming voice. The four all nodded in response. "Prince Haru, it is an honor to meet the heir of Symphonia," he said next, bowing his head towards him.

The prince watched him in discomfort for a bit before smiling. "The honor's all mine, King Haja," he replied finally. Haja smiled, and began to sweep away into the castle. "Feel free to just go right on in, King; someone will have be notified of your arrival by now," Haru said quickly, glancing at Let. The king nodded and disappeared into the castle.

Let and Julia turned to him and smiled. "Very nice. You certainly know how to make a first impression, kiddo," the queen said cheerfully, slapping him on the back.

"Awesome. Now I just gotta figure out a way to get Lucia and Uta to stop being pricks," he replied with a sigh, looking down at his hands.

Musica laughed, pushing the other two out of the way and throwing an arm around his shoulder. "And how you're gonna decide between your three lovely ladies," he added happily. "You stud muffin." Haru's head jerked up, and he glared at the other prince.

"I am not a stud muffin!" he cried, punching Musica as hard as he could on the shoulder. Julia roared with laughter, but Musica gasped out in pain. The two glared at one another for a few seconds longer before Haru turned around slowly and sprinted away, with Musica not far behind him.

"Get back here, stud muffin! I just wanna give you some _advice_!" he screamed after him. Haru shook his head, and continued to run. Just as he was taking a sharp turn, he distantly heard Julia shout something out at him; 'Kick his ass, Musica!'.

With a sigh, Haru grabbed the body of a tree on the grounds and turned sharply. "Thanks a lot, Julia," he muttered in amusement as he continued to run.

~x~

Author's Note: Poor Haru. Next chapter, I'll try to keep the Haru-bashing to a low level, alrightey?

I AM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG. To all my readers, and my Beta, I am SORRY. I kept on getting distracted, and not being home and whatnot…gah. Now that my classes are all done, I'll try to be a lot more efficient about updates, OK?


	9. Chapter 9: Monday Interesting yet Boring

Upside Down

~x~

Author's Note: Hmm…this chapter should be fun, both to read, and to write. Poor Haru. I'll try to keep the Haru-bashing down to a minimum this chapter, though.

Again, sorry updates have been so…shaky. Hopefully summer break will change that.

I want you all to know that there's NO way I'm gonna make up ten languages. Not even little tidbits of ten different languages. Just use your imagination on what they all sound like, and what the written language looks like. Sorry that I'm gonna end up being a little vague with the whole language-lesson; I'm just not quite talented enough to make a language, nor am I am fluent in any other language besides English. ):

~x~

**Chapter Nine: Monday; Interesting yet Boring**

"Sieg…?"  
Immediately, the man looked up from lacing his boots, surprise lining his features. It was a very rare thing to see Elie awake so early, he had quickly come to realize. "Yes, Elie?" he replied softly, sitting straight and staring at her. She seemed nervous, fidgeting even.

Sieg patiently waited for her nerves to calm down a little bit. "There's…something I forgot to tell you about," she finally admitted, biting down on her bottom lip. Before he could speak, however, Elie continued, "Haru told me that…King Lucia was here. Staying at the castle to…oversee him, or something, while he's still going through all the necessary lessons and stuff."

"How…Elie, why would you forget to tell me this!" demanded Sieg lowly, his violet eyes wide in his shock. She merely stared down at her hands, shrugging slightly. "It'll be…alright," he finally said, sighing deeply, "as long as he does not come down to the village to see you. I hadn't realized that anyone from Raregroove would be even remotely interested in the crowning of the new Symphonian heir, but I suppose the young King is curious to see the son of his fathers' killer."

Elie shrugged again. "I don't care why he's here;" she told him softly, "the fact that he's right here means that I'm going to have to be on my guard even more. We can't let him see me and go around telling the world of my whereabouts."

The blue haired man nodded in agreement. "Understandable. Him sharing your whereabouts, however, would be the least of our worries. What needs to be fretted over is what he'd do to _you_ if he recognizes you, Elie," he informed her gently. The brunette grimaced, wrapping her arms around her stomach.

"I know," she grumbled, shaking her head. "I just thought, you know, you'd like to know about this," she added after a second, turning to leave, "Have fun wherever you're going, Sieg."

The man waved slightly, bending over his knees and working with the laces once more. "Don't you worry, Elie," he muttered to himself, "I won't let anything happen to you. I vowed to protect you from anyone, and that's exactly what I'll do."

**XXX**

Groggily, Haru pushed himself off the mattress and glanced around his room. To his great surprise, he seemed to be completely alone. "Whoa," he said sleepily, rubbing his eyes to make sure. A smile appeared on his face; he was honestly, one hundred percent alone this morning. And, to his even greater surprise, he was awake far earlier than he had been. An idea came to the prince, and he quickly jumped out of bed and to his feet.

Haru's mind had reached two conclusions; he was completely alone in his room for the first time while actually being awake, and he had several hours before he was able to go down to eat. Now would be the best – and probably the only – time to explore the other rooms that he had neglected to visit.

With a huge grin, he stepped out of his master bedroom and into the small antechamber, looking around in the dark. Directly across from him were two large doors, exact replicas of the one he was standing in front of him. To his right were two other doors, with a large portrait of his father in between them. Deciding to work his way over to the door across from his left side, Haru grabbed the silver knob the door closest and pushed it open.

The room he found himself in happened to be the bathroom, looking exactly as it had the night before. With a sigh, he exited and turned to the other door, and entered what he guessed would be the changing room.

As he had assumed, the prince found himself in a room slightly smaller than his bathroom, with the same walls and floor as the antechamber. The most obvious difference, however, was the wall opposite Haru; an entire mirror took up every inch of the space. A small door off to his right told the prince that the bathroom and changing room were connected, though he had never noticed the second door during any of his baths. Several rows of different clothing obscured his view of the mirror, each rack filled with clothing more fancy than any he had ever seen. On one half of a rack, Haru found several sets of clothes that he had seen being worn down in the village. A grin appeared on his face; at least now he had a surefire way of being able to escape for a while if he needed to.

Once he had had his fill of browsing the clothes, Haru left the dressing room and moved onto the first door on his right. The first thing the prince saw when he had fully turned to face the room was the wall opposite him, but it could barely be considered a wall at all; one giant shelf stretched from corner to corner, crammed full of books of all sizes. Thick ones, thin ones, tall ones, and even some tiny ones stacked on top of one another. Stepping in tenderly, Haru noticed two very large red chairs in the center of the room. A cold fireplace was opposite them, against the wall that separated this room from the dressing room. Again, Haru turned back and began to scan the bookshelf, wishing that he had more of an interest in reading that he did; something told him that he'd never be able to read all these books in his lifetime.

Minutes passed before Haru could tear himself away from the room, closing the door silently behind him. Shiba had told him that he had a study in his quarters, but the prince never imagined having a mini-library right there across from his bedroom!

Quickly, he threw open the other door, expecting something spectacular and magical. What he found, however, was an empty room. Disappointed, her stepped in more and looked around – still empty. "Man, that sucks," he muttered, leaving the room.

Haru had been planning to try and go back to sleep after his exploration, but when he closed the door behind him and turned around he quickly realized that would be impossible. "What the…?" he demanded, jumping back. Across from him stood Alpine, his arms crossed against his chest and a very stern expression on his face. "Alpine, what are you doing up?" he asked, placing a hand over his racing heart. It was one thing to wake up and find someone else in his room, but to turn around and see a man standing there staring at him was another entirely.

"I always awake at this hour," answered the Knight simply. Haru nodded slowly, words lost. "The real question here," Alpine continued, "is just where you find enjoyment running off to?"

For several seconds, the prince simply stared at him, trying to understand what he meant. "Oh," he said when it finally made sense, "Well, Thursday and Saturday, I went down to the village. To let my friend Gemma know that I was alive, you know? And, yesterday, I went down to the city with Princess Celia. To get to know one another better."

Alpine didn't reply, and instead stared at him. "As a Prince," he finally said slowly, "you must set an example to all of Symphonia. Can you imagine what it looks like when the entire castle is on a rapid search for you on the outside? Next time you chose to leave the castle, inform Clea, Dalmatian, Deerhound, Shiba, or myself."

"In my defense, I didn't honestly know where I was going Thursday or yesterday!" Haru defended, scowling at the man. "Alright, how about I tell you now, then? This afternoon, I promised Gemma that I'd go down and see him again, and every Saturday I plan on spending the day down in the village with him and maybe a couple other friends," he said, crossing his arms against his chest.

Alpine looked as though his green eyes would bulge out of his narrow face. "P-Prince Haru! You can't associate yourself with villagers regularly. Not until your lessons are finished, at any rate," he said, his arms dropping to his side.

Heat suddenly filled Haru at that statement, and he had to look away to prevent himself from lunging at the man. "Really now," he said softly, finally turning back to him. "So, now that I'm a Prince, I have to totally estrange myself from the man who _raised_ me after the death of my Mother and sister, and my previous friends?" Alpine's face paled, but the prince wasn't done yet. "I'm going down to see Gemma tonight, and every Saturday – unless something comes up on his end. Yeah, I'm a Prince now, but that doesn't give me the right to be a total bastard to the people who I knew before."

Silence settled over the two, but Haru didn't feel the least bit uncomfortable about what he had said. Alpine, however, was more flustered than the prince would have expected him to become. "I…n-no, that's…" he stammered out, his green eyes darting everyone in the antechamber. Finally, he cleared his throat and bowed deeply, "Of course, my Prince. Many apologies."

"It's…fine," the prince answered slowly, looking down at his hands. Regardless of how many times it seemed to happen to him – walking down the corridors, entering the kitchen, leaving the castle – Haru wasn't sure he'd ever get the hang of people bowing left and right to him. "Hey, Alpine," he said thoughtfully, "how about we start the lesson a little early? I mean, if it's cool with you."

The man looked up in shock, his eyes still wide. "S-sire?" he asked in confusion. "I had expected the actual lessons to be the least exciting to you," he admitted with a shrug, watching the prince carefully.

Haru grinned. "Well, I have this friend down in the village, and she can speak like…eleven different languages! She was showing off for me the other day, and it got me really interested in learning a whole bunch of different languages, so I was wondering if…you know, we'd start with those, since I have all these foreign visitors."

"What languages can this friend of yours speak?" asked Alpine tightly, his eyes narrowing. Haru stared at him in disbelief for a second – why did the man think he would lie about something like this? – before naming each of the languages, ticking them off his fingers. As he recited what Elie had told him, he watched as Alpine's eyes slowly got wider and wider. "My goodness, I didn't realize that a peasant could be fluent in more than one language," he admitted softly.

Though that was what Elie was exactly, it still bothered him to hear her be called a peasant. She seemed too aware of what was going on in the world to be put down on the same level of the peasants – so few actually knew of the world around them. "Yeah, well, she comes from a different country, and her parents are teachers," he defended softly, shrugging. The man gave him a curious look, but nodded anyways.

"Right, well, I was planning on beginning with the different languages as it were," Alpine said softly, going to the door that led to his study and held it open for him. "We'll use this room for now, until it's time for breakfast and we take a break." Haru nodded, reentering the room and heading towards the large chairs by the empty fireplace. Alpine followed him in, setting to work on the fireplace.

Once there was a roaring fire in the room, Alpine sat down and began to talk about the languages. He explained how, sometime long ago, it was just four different languages, but distance and cultural differences began to change them into their own languages. Haru listened intently, trying not to look too bored or give away the fact that he already knew most of this. When Alpine had finished explaining the history, he began to talk in that same musical tone as Elie had, only his was much flatter. "Tell me, was that Raregroovian or Elian?" he commanded once he finished.

Haru considered. "It was Elian…right?" he guessed, having picked out a word he had heard Elie say when speaking Elian and not Raregroovian. A tight smile appeared on his teachers' face and he nodded.

"Correct. Mildish and Makan are even more similar than Raregroovian and Elian, however, the fact that you can distinguish between the two is good progress."

That being said, the teacher began to say the basic sounds of Elian, and Haru would repeat them, and when Alpine directed him to, recited them all. The prince soon found himself growing bored, though he knew that there was no excuse for such boredom; he had been the one that requested they start early, and he really did want to learn all these languages. "We'll have to arrange to meet at least once a day from hereon," Alpine said softly after a while, watching as Haru was writing the alphabet on a small scroll of paper.

"Why?" asked the prince softly, not looking up from his scroll. Writing it was so much harder than actually speaking it, but Alpine insisted that they learn verbal and nonverbal at the same time.

The older man sighed. "Because once a week won't be enough for you to learn ten different languages halfway fluently. I suppose an after supper lesson for…say, two hours, will have to do. Not including Monday's, of course," he explained casually.

At that, Haru looked up. "What about weekends?" he asked softly, his heart jumping to his throat. He couldn't have another lesson on the weekends, not when he already had plans both days.

"Right before bed, we'll have an hour long lesson. Regardless of your physical strength, we shall have the lesson."

Haru groaned slightly, but set back to work on writing all the different letters of Elian. On paper, he realized, it looked just as musical as it sounded. How could a language like this be even remotely related to Raregroovian, which sounded so much duller? He chose not to voice this question, and the lesson continued.

For hours, Alpine would say words similar to Symphonian words – there were so few, they finished this segment fairly fast – and began to write up a small list of vocabulary words for him. "These form a sentence," he instructed, "and I want you to figure out what it is. There's only one full sentence in it, but there should be a number of smaller phrases you can come up with as well." Haru stared at the words, frowning.

"But they're all in Elian. How am I supposed to remember what the translations are?" he asked curiously, tilting his head to the side slightly. Alpine gave him another tight smile, and the prince understood; "That's the point. I have to remember myself."

The man nodded, standing. "Correct," he said, and the lesson continued. Before breakfast had even begun, Haru found himself slowly learning different words that he was only far too eager to show off to Elie, when he saw her next Saturday. The thought of Elie's expression when he started to speak her own language only made him more determined to learn it, and his focus increase.

Alpine seemed rather pleased with the work they had gotten done, and the two completely skipped over breakfast without realized it; too caught up in the lesson. When the fire died down, neither one paid any attention to it, as the day was warmer now that the sun was coming up.

"Sir," Haru said softly, finishing with writing down another several words, "Alpine, I think the lesson is over." Alpine looked up from where he was sitting in surprise, green eyes narrowed, "Well, I mean, look outside. It's dinner time."

The older man's eyes followed Haru's hand slowly, and then slowly widened. "My goodness, it is!" he exclaimed, standing up, "You best get down to the dining hall, my Prince. I'll clean up here." Haru nodded gratefully, taking one look at the board that had the vocabulary words on them and silently memorized them.

"Thanks for the lesson, Alpine!" he called, waving as he ran out of the room, stomach growling loudly. The prince ran through the castle, his eyes set for only one set of double doors; the two doors that meant food. When he made it to the right room, he stopped to catch his breath. Nothing, he imagined could be worse than bursting into a room full of royalty and looking like a starved peasant. And Haru wasn't all too keen to test this theory, either.

Taking a deep breath, the prince pushed open the door and walked in, stopping short. For what seemed like the first time, there was no one else around the dining table; just the maids preparing it. "Oh, sorry," he said immediately, cheeks flooding with color. "I thought dinner would have been ready by now." The maids laughed cheerfully, curtsying politely.

"You can come back later, Prince Haru," one said casually, shrugging. She had light pink hair that gave her the appearance of having the majority of her head round, but it seemed to work for her. He nodded again, still embarrassed about barging in on them. When the door closed behind him, he slowly turned around and nearly jumped into the air.

Standing maybe a foot away from him were Let, Julia, and Musica, the last two smirking widely at him. "Do you guys _always _come behind people and scare the crap out of them?" he whined with a scowl, crossing his arms against his chest.

The queen laughed. "Well, if we did, it's not like we'd tell you. Where would the fun be in _that_?" she asked him, shrugging. Haru sighed, and she laughed again. "See, this is what Dalmatian really needs to work on with you; being more alert. Don't worry, it'll all come in due time," she quickly added when she saw his expression.

"I hope so. I mean, I was doing pretty well with Alpine all day," he said softly, shrugging. Let nodded in approval, eyes flickering off to the right. Julia's followed his in unison, and Musica and Haru followed their lead slowly. Immediately, anxiety and dislike filled Haru's body, and his round purple eyes narrowed. "Hello, King Lucia…King Uta," he said flatly, fixing his posture.

The two kings glanced at him for a second before turning more fully towards Let and Julia. "I've heard, though from where escapes me, that Makai is currently facing a Civil War. Would this be true?" asked Uta politely. It made Haru's stomach flip over, though if that was because of the idea of Julia and Let's country undergoing a Civil War, or because of how calm and respectful Uta sounded when addressing them he wasn't sure.

The three denizens of Makai exchanged a look of deliberation. "I wouldn't call it a Civil War," Julia finally threw it, shrugging daintily, "It appears that one of our vassal's is not as happy with his rank as he once was, is all. When Let and I return to Makai, the situation will die down, I'm sure." Let nodded gravely, edging slightly closer to Julia.

"The situation is most under control, King Uta, though your concern is greatly appreciated," added Let in his soft voice. Haru noticed a slight change in the man, however; where he always seemed warm around Musica and Julia, he had suddenly gone frigid; the coal color had gone flat and icy. Uta's eyes widened slightly, but he smiled and nodded.

Before anyone else could reply, three more sets of footsteps sounded and the entire crowd turned around, each with a different reaction. Musica's eyes widened, and he immediately stopped fidgeting; Lucia's sneer deepened; Uta's impassiveness flickered slightly before falling back into place; Julia's expression of politeness slipped off faster than ice; Let seemed to tense, the coldness in his eyes steadily growing; and Haru felt his heart rate increase, his palms go sweaty, and his eyes grow wide at their new visitors – Queen Reina, King Haja, and Princess Celia.

"I see that dinner's running a bit later than we're all used to," said Reina lightly, earning a giggle from Celia. Unlike their first appearances, all but Lucia, Uta, and Haja were dressed more casually then Haru had ever seen them; simple loose tunics with leggings, no capes or crowns for the guys, and Julia; a simple dress, minimum jewelry, and their hair falling around their shoulders gently. At that realization, Haru noticed that _he_ was still dressed the most casual of them all; his bed shirt, which was a white button down made from cotton, and loose fitting white cotton pants held together by a drawstring – his _pajamas_!

If anyone honestly cared, they didn't show it. "Looks like it," Musica agreed with a chuckle, eying Reina carefully. She smiled at him, eyes lingering slightly as she turned towards Haru.  
"Good morning, Prince," she teased happily. Immediately, heat filled Haru's face, and he looked down as if he had just noticed this as well. As he expected, Julia and Musica were smirking when he looked back up, and Uta and Lucia were glaring at him tauntingly, a million different ways to make fun of him very obviously running through their minds.

In response, Haru smiled charmingly at her. "Yeah, isn't it?" he replied happily, turning back to the doors as they opened. The maids bowed and held open the doors, allowing everyone to file in. As expected, Lucia and Uta took seats next to one another, flashing glances to the other one occasionally; Let, and Julia sat across from Haja, discussing things that Haru let glide over his messy head; Musica was sitting across from Reina, the two flirting with one another throughout the entire meal; leaving Haru to sit next to Celia, listening to her talk more about her day.

The dinner itself was better than amazing; it was, quite simply, the best meal that Haru had ever had in his life. Everything was cooked to perfection, as if made with him the only eater in mind. Even the drinks were utter perfection for the young prince, though he wasn't even entirely sure what sort of drink it was; maybe Gemma would have been able to tell him.

"Celia," Julia said, cutting off whatever the princess was about to say next. The blonde looked positively irritated, which was never a good sign. "Celia, could you do us all a favor and just shut the hell up?"

Haru nearly spit out what was in his mouth, and Celia gasped slightly. However, Julia seemed to be extremely annoyed about something, whether it was Celia or something different Haru didn't know. The blue haired princess looked back up at her, blue eyes aflame. "Why should I?" she asked angrily, "I wasn't butting into _your_ conversation, Julia." Haru felt his heart sink at the tone she used; the princess had spat out that last word as if it was something dirty.

In response, the blonde simply rolled her eyes. "Actually, you sort of were. With, you know, that insanely annoying chatter that was drowning everything else out. God, you're as bad as one of Makai's generals," she replied, glaring down at the princess once more. Let glanced between the two girls before flashing both Musica and Haru a look that clearly told them that they better not try to intervene.

"Whatever," muttered Celia, obviously relenting. Before Haru could say anything to cheer her up, the princess stood up and left the room, silence following her. The prince stared at the door she had left from, sorely tempted to go after her or say something to Julia.

"God, I can't stand that annoying little…" Julia said with another eye roll, rubbing her temples. Haru glanced back at her briefly, guessing that something else was bothering her and deciding not to ask.

With a sigh, he stood up, unsure of what to say. "Er, well…I have to go see a good friend of mine," he said softly, earning himself a burning stare from Musica, "Have a good night, everyone." Once that awkward statement had been said, the prince quickly fled the room, almost sprinting to the stables in order to find that horse of his to ride down to see Gemma.

Once he reached it, Haru pulled the horse from its' little pen and took a running mount, desperate to go down and explain everything to Gemma. Gemma, who was the closest thing to a father he said, Gemma who had stood next to him during the funeral. And maybe, just maybe…he'd see Elie too.

As soon as Haru was done in the village entrance, he dismounted the beautiful animal and tied her up to a tree, entering the village with full knowledge that he was still in his pajamas. Before he had taken even three steps, he heard a familiar girl call out to him, "You are the exact opposite of any prince imaginable, did you know that?" Immediately, a grin appeared on his face, and he turned to his left to see Elie leaving a small shop, a bag of groceries in her pale arms.

"Yeah, well, you don't exactly look like a peasant either, Ms. Eleven Languages," he retorted cheerfully. She rolled her round brown eyes at him, but still seemed happy to see him nonetheless. "I would've figured you and your family would be eating supper or something by now," he admitted as the two began walking into the village.

Elie shrugged. "Usually, we eat kinda late, 'cause Sieg has his class and all that, but today he's making a dinner for Niebel, since it's his birthday," she explained with a smile, "Since I've only been living with them for a little bit, I decided to go for a walk and let them have some father-son time. Or something." Haru nodded knowingly, glancing at her sideways.

As he had seen her last Saturday, she seemed to be completely out of place with her surroundings. The worn brown dress she had on contrasted heavily with her beauty, though Haru couldn't quite place his finger on why. "Wanna come in and see my friend Gemma with me? I gotta, you know, explain the whole prince thing to him," he finally asked, slowing down as they neared the little pub. Elie slowed as well, glancing from him to the bag.

"Sure. But, I don't have any money," she admitted carefully. Haru shrugged, grinning. Elie stared at him for a second before a grin appeared on her own face as well, "You didn't bring down any money from the castle, did you?" she asked, laughing as he shook his head, "What, you haven't found the treasury yet?"

Haru laughed as well, taking her arm and leading her towards the pub. "Not yet. But, I will," he promised, being the gentleman and holding the door open. Immediately, Gemma looked up from the bar and grinned at them both. "Hey, Gemma."

"Haru! And you brought you friend," he said cheerfully, gesturing to the empty bar. The two sat down, and the bartender immediately brought them both out some drinks. "It's nice to see you again, Elie," Gemma said honestly, grabbing a dirty glass and beginning to clean it. Deciding not to ask, Haru took a long drink from his glass.

"As good as always," he told him when he had finished. "Anyways, you wanna hear something completely outrageous?" asked the prince with a wide grin, "I'm actually royalty! Who would've guessed, huh?" Haru had asked it as a joke, complete with a laugh, but Gemma's smile slipped off his face.

Electricity filled the air. "H-how'd you figure that out?" the older man asked, shaking so bad he nearly dropped the glass. Elie looked between the two, gently sucking down her drink. "Your mom didn't want you knowing who your dad was…"

Haru stared at him impassively. "A guy named Shiba found me. Took me up the castle. I look almost exactly like my dad, and nearly all my other ancestors. Kinda hard to miss, you know?" he said casually, shrugging. A sudden thought came to him, and he stared at the man who had raised, "Wait, you _knew_? You knew that I was related to the _King_, and you didn't even bother to tell me?"

"Haru, I couldn't," Gemma said softly, looking genuinely sorry, "Sakura made me promise not to tell either you or Cattleya, until you found out for yourself. You don't think I wouldn't have loved to tell you that you were related to King Gale?" The prince simply glared at him, his anger still surging through his veins.

Just as Gemma was about to reply, Elie placed a hand on his arm. "Chill out, Haru," Elie said softly, her brown eyes twinkling, "It doesn't matter whether or not Gemma told you. You found out eventually, right? And besides," she said, rolling her eyes, "would you honestly have believed him?"

The prince considered, debating. "No, probably not," he admitted grudgingly. Elie grinned, and gave him a look that clearly said to quit complaining then. Gemma shot her a grateful look, and turned back to Haru.

"Alright, tell me everything that's happened up at the castle, Prince Haru," he commanded, laughing loudly. Elie chuckled a bit, watching him carefully.

With a great sigh, Haru began to tell them both everything that had happened in the little time he had been up at the castle. With Gemma, it was sometimes difficult to talk seriously – the man never stopped laughing, for God's sake! – but neither of his audience interrupted him once. He must have talked for an hour straight, not even noticing the change of lighting in the place as he talked. When he finished, he took a deep breath and reached for the drink Gemma had given him sometime during his tale.

"Wow," Elie breathed softly, a peculiar expression on her face. "Wow, I can't believe Alpine is actually teaching you Elian! I didn't even know that it was considered a major country!" she said, not meeting his eyes. There was something definitely off about her expression, but Haru didn't ask.

Before he could even comment on that, Gemma interrupted them. "Kiddo, you two better get back on home. Especially you, Princey," he added carefully, picking up the discarded drinks, "Wouldn't want you gettin' in any trouble." Haru and Elie nodded, bidding their goodbyes sadly before leaving the shop, glancing around at the rain that had started.

Elie shivered slightly, wrapping her arms around her. "I hate the rain," she said sourly, sighing. "I'll see you Saturday, OK, Haru?" she asked, turning to leave. Before she could leave, Haru caught her elbow, holding her in place.

"Elie…is everything alright?" he asked impulsively, staring straight into her innocent eyes. They were much deeper than she was letting on, swimming with all sorts of secrets and things that Haru couldn't even guess at. And there was definitely, definitely something wrong with the way they seemed so glassy.

The brunette smiled sweetly at him. "Of course," she said evenly. Haru stared into her eyes, silently telling her that he didn't believe a word of it. She silently gave him a look that told him he better start. "See ya' Saturday!" she said again, gently pulling her arm free and rushing down the streets, the rain bouncing off her tiny frame all the while.

For several minutes, Haru simply stared after her, even after she was long since gone. Elie was a mystery, he realized. A hidden secret that Symphonia had never seen the likes of before. And he, Haru Glory, would make it his mission to uncover that secret.

After all, what were friends for?

~x~

Author's Note: Tada! Hey, look at that; it's actually been less than a week since my last update! AWESOME. Haha, well, I hope all of my lovely readers are enjoying their summer vacations, if their on it, of course.

I hope you liked this chapter. I've also decided that, after we come to a full cycle of lessons and all that jazz, I'm going to make the main focus on Haru's free time. AKA, him juggling his feelings for Celia and his growing bond with Elie. (: Fun.

Thanks for reading~!


	10. Chapter 10: 'Happy' Tuesday Surprises

Upside Down

~x~

Author's Note: This chapter made me want to throw something at the computer. xD If you've read any of my other stories, and know my views of certain pairings, you'll understand. ;P Just keep reading~

~x~

**Chapter Ten: 'Happy' Tuesday Surprises**

Groggily, and actually dressed in normal clothes today, Haru made his way down to the dining hall. He had come back to the castle soaking wet, and with a very angry horse, which hadn't been nearly as amusing as he had hoped it would have been. Sonya had given him the strong urge to give himself a lobotomy, but resisted with the knowledge that doing so would make getting to know Celia and Elie better impossible.

"Good morning, Prince Haru," a maid said as he passed. He grinned at her widely before turning his head and yawning widely. He had slept little last night, too worried about finding a way to get Celia to like him, and figure out Elie's story at the same time.

When he reached the dining hall, Haru simply pushed the doors open and walked over to the table without bothering to glance around. "Someone's a morning person," teased someone happily, lightly punching his arm. Haru didn't reply except to grab the nearest platter of food and scoop a pile onto the plate in front of him.

"Good morning, Haru-kun," said someone cheerfully, causing Haru's sleepiness to vanish and quickly be replaced by keenness.

He grinned at her cheerfully, straightening up. "Good morning, Princess Celia," he said with as much gusto as he could manage. Next to him, he could feel Musica roll his eyes, but chose to ignore it. "Did you sleep well?"

The princess nodded happily. "Yep! I have some good news for you, too!" she said, clapping her hands together. Haru felt his heart rate increase again, but he simply gestured for her to continue with a smile on his face. "My older sister, Queen Fumia, is gonna come to see your crowning! She'll be here either tomorrow or today," she explained. Haru nearly dropped his fork at the news – how could that _possibly_ be considered good? – but instead kept his smile plastered on his face.

"Awesome! I can't wait to meet your older sister, Celia," said Haru earnestly, taking a large forkful of whatever he had scooped onto his plate to stop himself from saying something stupid. Musica snorted quietly into his hand, but Celia didn't seem to notice; her large blue eyes were focused on Haru, and Haru only.

"You really think so?" asked the blue haired beauty with wide eyes, clapping her hands together again, "Ooh, I can't wait to tell her! I'm going to go write her a letter right now and told her you said that!" That being said, the princess ran from the room, waving behind her. As soon as she was gone, Haru moved his plate away and let his head fall onto the wood, groaning.

Next to him, Musica laughed. "You know, it was a really dumb idea of your Knights to alert every God damn kingdom in the world of your existence so early on," he said nonchalantly.

"You think?" replied Haru grumpily, sitting back up and beginning to wolf down his breakfast. "Why did they have to go and tell _every_ country? I mean, I'm not ready to meet all these kings and queens and princes and princesses, and here they come! All to see my crowning. For God's sake, I'm not even sure if I have a right to be crowned king!"

A stale silence settled over the two. Haru had tried to suppress these thoughts, but they had spewed out of him faster than he could stop them. Musica didn't say anything, simply watching him. "Just relax. You aren't prepared yet because this time last week, you thought you were just a farmer, and now, you're the prince of Symphonia," he said softly, causing his friend to turn around and stare at him. "It ain't like you're all on your own in this, you know. You got me, an' Julia, an' Let. And your friends down at the village."

Haru sighed, nodding. "I know," he said, turning back to his food and continuing to eat. It was easy to forget that Musica hadn't been a prince from birth; he was so much more at ease with all these people than Haru was. "Maybe spending the day with Dalmatian will loosen me up," the prince muttered, finishing his plate and standing back up. "See ya' later."

"Later," called out the silverclaimer as he left, tilting back in his chair. Haru waved at him absently, heading out of the dining hall and pausing. Dalmatian had never really told him where they'd be meeting, and it wasn't like he had the time to check every single room for the knight. Haru sighed, about to turn around and wait in the dining hall for Dalmatian to find him when he heard footsteps off to his right.

Immediately, he turned around and sighed in relief. "Prince Haru," said Dalmatian in relief, "I was wondering if you had finishing eating yet. Are you ready for your lesson?" The prince nodded cheerfully, and began to follow the older man down the corridor. "How have your other lessons been going?"

Haru considered. "Well, I got a huge headache from walking around with a book on my head with Clea, got my ass handed to me by Shiba, and had an extremely long lesson with Alpine," he said slowly, grinning, "I'm sort of hoping working with you or Deerhound is gonna be a bit easier than that." Dalmatian grinned, taking a long drag of his pipe in response.

When they finally reached the room that Dalmatian wanted, Haru found that he was slightly disappointed about it; it was like the little shack that Shiba had taken him to. It was very simply decorated, with one candle in the middle of the room. "Simplicity is something that needn't be taken for granted," said the knight softly. Haru nodded immediately, turning back to face him. He smiled at the prince through his pipe, walking past him and sitting down with his back towards the wall, facing the candle. "Sit down."

Once he was seated, Dalmatian closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Do you know why I'm teaching you meditation?" he asked calmly, his brown eyes closed serenely. Haru watched him for a second, trying to mimic the way he was sitting before he answered.

"Because it's…relaxing?" he guessed, closing his eyes tightly.

The knight took another deep breath. "I suppose that is a part of it. But, when you meditate, you delve into a part of your being unreachable by conscious thought. This is the part of you that will guide you through troubling times, difficult decisions, and most of all…it will aid you in what choices you will inevitably have to make in the future," he said softly.

Haru nodded, taking a deep breath as well. "It's my understanding that you and Shiba meditated for quite some time on your less," said the knight after a while, "Do you know why he had you meditate rather than go straight to learning the basics of swordsmanship?"

"Because…" tried Haru, trying to recall if Shiba had given a reason for their meditation. "No, I don't know why he had me meditate," he finally admitted with a sigh.

"Do you recall Shiba telling you that Knights from all over the world would be soon departing for a mission?" Dalmatian asked suddenly, not waiting for a confirmation from Haru before continuing, "From what I've heard, the method Shiba intends to teach you calls for that particular portion to be saved for last. Yet, he had it go first. Do you think you understand now?"

Haru thought about it for a while. "In case he had to leave, and wouldn't be back for a while, he wanted to make sure I got that part down?" he finally guessed, taking another deep breath.

"Correct. Now, no more talk. Just…relax. Let all your thoughts fade, and your worries vanish into nothingness," directed the knight in that same soft voice. Haru nodded gently, forcing all of his thoughts out of his head and focusing only on the darkness.

Like last time he meditated, Haru felt his worries and fears melt away. He sighed inwardly, taking another deep breath and allowing the meditation to take its' effect.

**XOX**

Elie yawned, rubbing her eyes sleepily. "Good morning, Princess," said a deep voice from the opposite side of the room. Immediately, she shot up, heart pounding. Her eyes landed on a rather heavily build man with dark orange hair, and a single eye to match it. The other eye was permanently closed due to one scar that went down it, as well as two other facial scars. He was a familiar face, scars and all, but Elie had expected to see him again anytime soon.

"Shuda!" she said happily, grinning at him. "I thought you were in Elie Village, feeding the press false news about where Resha is…?" The Knight shrugged, looking down gravely. Immediately, Elie felt her heart drop – this couldn't be good.

Shuda sighed. "You see, Elie, one of our own wrote an article in the newspaper claiming that he knew exactly where Resha was, and that he would go and get her to bring her back," he explained somberly, "He nearly told all of Elie Village her whereabouts, Sir Julius managed to, ah, stop him." Elie shivered; Julius might be a very narcissistic person, but he was not one to anger.

The brunette looked down at her hands. "Who decided to tell the world where Resha was?" she asked softly, not wanting the answer and yet needing to ask.

"Sir Deep Snow."

Elie gasped, her eyes wide. Sir Deep Snow had been working for the Valentine family for a short period of time, but he had risen through the ranks and had become one of the country's most loyal servants, or so he claimed. "Why would Deep Snow try to rat me out?" she blurted out, immediately covering her mouth. Shuda shot her glance, and the two tensed for a moment, half-expecting someone to come bursting into the room and rightfully accuse them.

When no one did, they relaxed. "I'll pray that outbursts like that come rarely," said the Knight flatly, watching as Elie's cheeks flushed and she nodded eagerly. "Thank you. However, yes, Deep Snow has proved to be very traitorous indeed. It took Sir Julius, Lady Nagisa, and I to stop him from publicly announcing what really happened when you vanished."

Elie sighed in relief. Lady Nagisa, while younger than she was, was one of the strongest fighters that Elie Village had. She and her father, Yuma, had been working for the Valentine family for generations, and she had, like Deep Snow, proven herself very well in combat. "I'm glad to hear Nagisa is safe. I heard Sir Hardner was giving her an awful time," said the girl absently, running a hand through her hair. "Where's Sieg?"

"He has gone back to Elie Village, with his adopted son. They have been away longer than anyone, making preparations for you, and he found it in his best interest to return," explained Shuda softly, sighing, "That's why I'm here. Sieg mentioned that you've become friends with Prince Haru, correct?" he asked, waiting for her nod before continuing, "While he respects your friendship, he fears that by becoming too close to the newest royalty, you'll attract another one of royal blood. One that would not be in your best interest to meet."

"If you're talking about Lucia, don't worry," said Elie immediately, "He's far too good to come down to the village. He probably won't even leave the castle." Shuda watched her carefully, his eye boring into her skull. "And, I doubt he'll recognize me. It's been nearly half a year since I saw him, and my hair's all different…"

Shuda sighed, standing. "Either way, I'll be here to whisk you away first sign of danger," he said, pausing slightly, "I swore fealty to the Valentine family. As the last in the line, all of my loyalties lie within you." Once that was said, he left the room, leaving behind a very stricken Elie.

The last in the line…but, what about her Father? He had been alive when she left. She knew; she had left him a note. "Wait, Shuda!" she called, jumping out of the bed and running after him, "What do you mean? 'Last in the line'…?" The Knight gave a sympathetic smile, and she gasped.

"After Resha vanished," started the man slowly, "the King became sick with grief. I wanted to come back to Symphonia as soon as I could, to bring you back just to revive him, but, he wouldn't allow me to leave his side. I told him…in his final hours, of the true situation. He asked me to tell you not to worry, that he would…be meeting your mother again."

Tears were falling down Elie's eyes, but she made no move to wipe them away. It didn't matter anymore. Her parents were dead, and it was all because of her…her and her power. "Thank you for…telling me, Shuda," she said softly, bowing her head before walking past him and leaving the house. She didn't really know where she was going, nor could she see very well, but none of that seemed to matter to Elie at the moment.

Her mother had died because carrying the child with Etherion had ruined her inner body. Her father had died of grief because she fled the country out of fear.

She reached the lake that her and Haru had spent the day at, and collapsed on the bank, her entire body shaking with the force of her sobs.

**XOX**

When Haru was finally finished with his meditation, it was very late into the day. The candle had signs of being extinguished for several hours, and the light from the window was a fiery orange color. "Whoa," he said lightly, holding his growling stomach. Across from him, Dalmatian nodded, his pipe in his smiling mouth.

"I would have expected you to become antsy or restless," he explained, standing up and offering him a hand. "You did very well. I suppose the lessons will be useless on you; we'll be meeting now just to meditate. It will relax your soul." Haru grinned back at him, taking his hand and heaving himself up. "I understand that you're hungry," the Knight said slowly, "but you've been requested elsewhere."

The prince sighed, and nodded. "I hate to ask, but can you take me there?" he asked, too hungry to care that he still didn't know his way around yet. Dalmatian grinned, his pipe twitching slightly in his mouth, but he nodded anyways. "Thanks."

Once the two were off, Haru fell strangely quiet. His thoughts were on Princess Celia, and her sister's looming visit. The blue haired beauty had told him her life story, just about anyways, on Sunday, so he knew her fairly well, but Haru couldn't help but feel worried about meeting her sister. The way Fumia was mentioned was almost like reverence. And now she'd be coming here, soon even. "Here we are," said Dalmatian, breaking his thoughts. "Just go right in there." Haru nodded again, thanking him once more, and headed in.

It was the same room that he had first met Celia and Lucia in, he realized quickly. In the middle of the room were Alpine, looking rather pleased about something, Princess Celia, and a taller woman. She had the same exact eyes as Celia, but her hair couldn't have been more different; long black curls cascaded down the woman's back, held away from her eyes by a thin band with a small gem dangling from it. What looked like feathers poked out from her hair, but Haru couldn't be sure if that was just from the headband or if they were real. Bracelets of all sorts decorated her arms, and it looked like several markings were on her left arm. She was dressed in a pale blue dress that tightly hugged her body and flowed from her chest to the floor, strapless.

She was, without a doubt, one of the most beautiful women Haru had ever laid eyes on. Celia was the spitting image of her, with some obvious differences – the hair, and Celia still had the innocence that Haru associated with smaller children.

"Hello, Prince Haru," said Alpine pleasantly, beaming at the boy. "It's my pleasure to introduce to you the Queen of Mildesta; Queen Fumia," he continued, bowing deeply to the woman. Haru smiled as warmly as he could, bowing as well.

The woman waited patiently for them both to straighten up before speaking. "It's a pleasure to meet the heir to Symphonia," she said, her voice rich and smooth. "My sister has written much about you the past several days," she said, her blue eyes flashing down to Celia, who blushed. Haru smiled at her, and she shyly waved at him. "Alpine and I have been discussing some important matters the past two hours, but we wanted the voice of you two before it was finalized."

Haru turned to Celia, who shrugged. "What important matters have you been discussing?" asked the prince slowly, turning to his Knight.

"While Mildesta and Symphonia have always been on excellent terms, we believe that a war may begin between other nations. A war that may very well separate the world into two dividing sides. Because of this, alliances are a most crucial factor to ensure that the leading countries remain standing strong," Alpine began, pacing around the room. He nodded to Fumia, as if they had rehearsed this.

The Queen nodded back. "While alliances are indeed binding, we believe that a more binding sentiment is in order. I'm sure you know that Mildesta and Makai, both on wonderful terms with Symphonia, are not on well terms with each other. In these times, we need to set apart our differences and join forces. However, the people of Makai are too proud, and they never forget what they feel has wronged them, so this has proved impossible as of late."

"But," cut in Alpine, "we believe that we have found a solution to this. If Mildesta and Makai were to join forces in a stronger union, Makai will feel inclined to forgive Mildesta for what they find as past wrongs."

Haru nodded, finding amusement in how they referred to all the countries as if they were people rather than actually name those in charge. "That sounds like a brilliant plan, Fumia!" squealed Celia happily, smiling brightly. Her smile turned to Haru, and the prince felt his legs start to melt away at the sight; she was just so adorable.

"I agree. But, you've failed to mention what this stronger union would be," he pointed out, careful to speak properly. Fumia may be Celia's sister, but she had an air that suggested no tolerance for weakness.

Fumia smiled tightly at him. "Marriage. Two decades ago, the idea was proposed between King Gale and myself, as I had just turned sixteen, and he was in his early twenties, but…as you can see, that did not happen," she explained, a sudden look of hatred passing her blue eyes before quickly dispelling.

The prince felt suddenly very sick. Fumia spoke about her failed engagement in such a way that suggested that she hated the woman that ended it very deeply. The woman that just so happened to be Haru's mother. Just as he was about to defend her, a sudden thought stopped him. Marriage. Well, he was the only heir to Symphonia – as far as he knew, anyways – and it looked like Fumia and Celia were the two remaining royalties in Mildesta. So, unless Alpine had decided to marry him off to Queen Fumia – who had to be in her thirties – he was about to become engaged to…

"Marriage?" Celia asked, suddenly understanding what Haru had come to understand. "But…between whom?"

Alpine bowed his head, and Fumia placed a hand on her sisters' shoulder. "An arranged marriage. Between the last living heir to Symphonia and the youngest heir to Mildesta."

Haru felt the room begin to shine around his vision. An arranged marriage. To Celia. To Princess Celia, whom Haru had felt attracted to since the first time he had met her. It would be wonderful, seeing her every day, being able to speak to her every day, being able to…

But, he had only known her for several days! Alpine looked up, seeing Haru and sighing. "Prince Haru," he said softly, "I understand that you find an arranged marriage…troubling, but try and see the pros of this situation. You and Celia get along very well, and it is not as though you're being offered to some distant countries princess who's far too young or old for you; Celia is your perfect marriage prospect!"

The prince heard a squeal of excitement, and he turned to Celia, who was jumping up and down. "Oh, Fumia, this is so wonderful!" she cried, suddenly running over to Haru and hugging him tightly around the neck. "I knew that we had something special, Haru-chan!" Haru caught her, and hugged back, but he still felt uneasy about it all.

_It's just because I don't like the idea of an arranged marriage is all. This is Princess Celia! I bet she's got all kinds of suitors back in Mildesta, and _I_ get to be the one that marries her! This is great!_

"Yeah, me too," he agreed, grinning at her brightly. She giggled, beaming at him. Alpine cleared his throat, and the two looked back, their arms still around one another.

"The marriage shall be held exactly four weeks after your crowning ceremony, Prince. The exact date is obviously still under debate, depending on how fast or how slow you go through your lessons," he said formally, gesturing to Fumia again. The queen shook her head, beginning to head out.

She paused at the door, smiling, "I will be in my room. Come and see me later, Celia." With that last sentence, the queen disappeared through the door, with Alpine following her closely behind. Celia turned back to Haru and smiled brightly.

"I never thought that I'd get to marry into the Symphonian legacy! This is so great, Haru!" she cried, hugging him again. Haru laughed, hugging her back just as tightly. "Ooh, I can't wait to be a queen!"

The prince grinned. "I can't wait to be a king!" he said, releasing her and throwing his arms in the air. "I mean, a couple weeks ago, I never thought this would be happening! And now I'm prince of Symphonia, and I'm engaged! To _you_, whose gotta be, like, the prettiest person ever!" he said, laughing. Celia laughed with him, blushing deeply.

Before either of them could say anything more, the door to the room suddenly burst open, and they immediately jumped apart. "Whoa," said their visitor cheerfully, stopping. "Well, hey there, guys."

"Hey, Musica," said Haru flatly, trying to muster up a smile. Celia gave her hello as well, sounding just as annoyed as Haru was feeling. At that realization, a new wave of admiration flowed through Haru, and it took all his self-control not to smile at her.

Musica smiled slowly, looking from one to the other. "Princess," he said slowly, his eyes stuck on Haru's, "can I speak to my good friend here, privately?" Celia nodded, waving her goodbye to Haru and silently leaving. "Whoa there, kid," said the silverclaimer, grabbing Haru's arm as he tried to push past him as well, "Wanna tell me what the two of you were doing in here?"

The prince considered for a second, debating on whether or not he was still pissed or not. He chose the latter, and a wide grin came to his face. "I'm gettin' married!" he said before he could stop himself, laughing cheerfully. Musica stared at him with wide eyes, so he continued. "Her older sister, Fumia, was engaged to my dad before he died, but that obviously didn't happen, so now Celia an' I are gonna get married instead!"

"Dude, why?" Musica asked slowly, letting him go. "I mean, yeah, she's attractive and all that, but she's a bit…empty headed, don't you think?" he asked, rubbing the back of his head, "I'm happy for you and all that, but…well, I don't think Julia is really gonna like it."

It was one of the few times Haru had even seen Musica get so serious, which was usually something to listen to. The prince sighed, shrugging. "Not like I have much of a choice; Celia's all excited, and it isn't like I haven't been attracted to her either. And besides, we'll have plenty of time to get to know one another better before we actually…you know, get married. Maybe she isn't as empty headed as she comes off," he said hopefully, looking down at his hands.

The two stood in silence for a second. "You shouldn't have to get married to someone you don't love, you know," said the older one softly. Haru shrugged again, not looking up. "I dunno, it just seems wrong to me. Besides," he added with a smirk, "the look on Julia's face when she hears the news will be _priceless_." Haru looked up then, grinning as well.

"Yeah," he agreed, and the two set off. "You know what I'd really like?" he asked as they headed towards the dining hall, "A chance to meet Resha Valentine. I mean, all these huge powers are swarming Symphonia for a chance to meet me, but Resha hasn't even contacted anyone."

Musica laughed. "Dude, you're engaged! You can't be goin' around wanting to meet other chicks!" he teased. "But, I see your point. That prick Lucia is the only one besides the people of Elie Village to have actually seen her. Oh, dude, guess what I heard," he said suddenly, snapping his fingers. Haru looked up with an expression that clearly said he wasn't going to guess, so the silverclaimer continued. "I heard that King Valentine died the other day. Sick with grief about his missing daughter, and late wife. I bet you _any_thing that Resha's gonna have to get back to Elie Village now. There's this whole big civil war type thing goin' on over there, too. The country is basically in freakin' turmoil," he said, whistling slightly.

The prince stared at him in disbelief. "I wonder if Elie's heard about that…" he muttered to himself, wishing suddenly it was a Friday night and not a Tuesday night. "Oh, hey! Dude, I just had a great idea!" he said suddenly, stopping them both. "Let's go down to the village! You can meet Elie, and my friend, Gemma!" Musica stared at him for a second before grinning widely.

"Definitely! We gonna get some grub while we're down there?" he asked, pulling out a small sack of what Haru guessed were silver or bronze coins. The younger one nodded, and the two ran to the grounds, racing each other to see who could get to the stable first.

When they reached it, Musica claimed that he got the best horse because he won, and the two browsed the stalls. "Just grab one! I dunno if we'll catch her at Gemma's or not!" hissed Haru impatiently, close to tapping his foot to try and get the man to hurry up. With a grin, Musica pulled out a horse at random, waiting patiently for Haru to grab his favorite one before the two headed off.

As always, the ride down to the village was smooth and easy, and the two quickly tied their horses out of sight of the other villagers. "Come on, it's this way," directed Haru, rushing forward. The two weaved in and out of people, careful enough not to hurt anyone in the process. When they reached it, Haru peeked inside and frowned. "She isn't there," he stated simply, considering.

"Awesome. Lead me all the way down here, and the chick isn't even here!" complained Musica, glaring at the younger one. Haru rolled his eyes, an idea suddenly coming to him.

"I know where she is," he said, leading the way. Musica grumbled something behind him, but Haru didn't ask for a repeat, and the two continued to weave through the people until they reached the edge of the road, staring out towards a lake even more beautiful at this time of day than when Haru had seen it last. There, on the banks, was the silhouette of someone sitting on one of the rocks, and Haru grinned, pointing to it. "Come on."

Slowly, Haru and Musica approached the person, who had looked up at the sound of their approach. "Haru?" she asked in surprise, standing up. As they drew closer, Haru immediately noticed something wrong; her eyes were rimmed with a pinkish tint, and her cheeks were puffy…as if she had been crying all day.

"Hey!" he said cheerfully regardless, grinning. "This is my friend, Musica. Musica, this is Elie," he introduced, stepping back for them to get a better look at one another. Elie's brown eyes had gone wide, and she stared in between the two for a second before remembering her manners and curtsying. Musica waved it away, holding out a hand to shake.

"Nice to meet ya'," he said pleasantly, shaking her tiny hand slowly. "So, you're seriously from Elie Village?" he asked bluntly, but with an obvious disbelief in his tone.

Before Haru could tell him to knock it off, Elie grinned and began a steady stream of what sounded more like singing than talking; Elian. Musica didn't look surprised, but he did have a sudden sense of awe to his eyes. "Very nice. See, unlike my two friends, I rejected the whole idea of learning a shit ton of other languages. That, and I was like…I dunno, thirteen or something when they took me in," he said with a grin.

Elie smiled back at him. "I'm not surprised. Not too many kings and queens and princes and princesses bother to learn Elian. Since it isn't a major power, most think it's completely useless," she said casually, sitting back down on the rock. Musica and Haru followed suit, and she grinned at them. "How come you guys came down to see me? Won't the people staying with you get all upset?"

Haru shrugged. "I dunno. As long as I'm there for lessons and stuff, it shouldn't be a problem," he pointed out, holding his stomach as it growled. As if that was the cue, both Musica and Elie's stomachs did the same, causing all three of them to laugh. "Wanna go get some grub over at Gemma's?" suggested Haru, earning himself two eager nods.

"So, Elie, is it true that Resha can shoot a beam of Etherion from her bare hands that's like…a hundred miles across?" asked Musica as they walked, taking it upon himself to start up the conversation. Elie laughed, shrugging. "You mean you've never seen her?"

That seemed to amuse Elie greatly, and she laughed even harder. "Of _course_ I've seen her!" she giggled, "But, it's not like Resha would…you know, just shoot out random beams of Etherion whenever she felt like it. If it had hit anyone, they would have probably died. I mean, from the studies done on Etherion, it looks like if you're directly hit with it, there really isn't any way to heal yourself."

She said it so matter-of-factly, that Haru had to wonder where she really got her information. When he turned back to ask her, she had that guarded expression on her face again, silently telling him that if he asked, he wouldn't get an answer. "Alright, have you ever actually seen Etherion?" asked Musica instead, rolling his eyes at her.

Like the last question, Elie burst out into laughter. "Yeah, once," she answered when she had calmed down. "When Resha was little, before anyone really knew what kind of magic she had, she accidentally shot a beam out of her hand that went through the castle wall and everyone living by the castle saw it," she explained with a wide grin.

"Why the hell do you keep on laughing at my questions?" Musica demanded, his expression torn between amusement and annoyance. Elie grinned widely at him, and he sighed.

"Because they're so typical!" she replied with a giggle, "Everyone who figures out that I'm from Elie Village always ask me these questions. 'What does Resha look like?' 'What do you know about Etherion?' 'Do you know where the princess is?'. It's just so funny that you're exactly like all the others."

Haru snorted into his hand. "Yeah, like you probably didn't ask all the same questions, you brat," Musica said, punching his arm lightly. Elie started to laugh again, and this time, Haru joined her.

"Actually," he said with a wide grin, "I didn't. I didn't even make the connection between Resha and Elie Village when she told me that's where she was from." Musica rolled his eyes, but he seemed to be amused still. "See, unlike _you_, I actually care about Elie, and not what she can tell me about Resha Valentine."

Musica suddenly grabbing him around the neck. "Dude, if I can outrun you at the castle, what makes you think I can't outrun you here in the village?" he asked cheerfully, earning a happy laugh from Elie behind them. Haru grinned up at him awkwardly, much to his friends' annoyance.

"Because I know the village a lot better," stated the younger prince cheerfully. Musica released him, and rolled his eyes. "Come on, let's just go get some food," said Haru quickly, turning sharply into the bar and holding the doors open.

**XOX**

Musica stopped, staring at Elie. "He's in a really good mood," stated the silverclaimer cheerfully. Neither of them headed in, simply watching as he talked to the man behind the bar and laughing. Elie sighed, shrugging.

"There's something on his mind," the brunette replied softly, "I can tell." Musica stared at her in surprise, but her brown eyes did not meet his. It was then that Musica realized that, despite her immense beauty – and his own personal attraction to just about anything that wore a dress – he would never fall for her. She had the same air that Julia had, excluding the whole 'tough fighter' attitude. It was the air that Musica related to being more like a sister than anything.

"Oh? You know him that well that you can just tell these things?" he asked, leaning against a wooden beam, arms crossed. There was something…off about Elie. Musica would usually have been making all sorts of flirtatious jokes by now, but he didn't feel the need. It didn't make much sense to him, but it was like…he knew that trying to curt her would be completely useless, like she was already very much in love with someone else.

And that was something Musica never did. If a girl loved someone else, then he backed off. Simple as that.

Elie shrugged again. "I've only known him a couple days, but, can't you tell? He's trying too hard to make us laugh and stuff," she pointed out, gesturing to the window. Musica turned towards it, watching as Haru and the bartended got into an argument. He watched the two for a second before sighing and nodding.

"Yeah, he is. Kid's probably getting all stressed out about suddenly being a prince and stuff. It took me weeks before I got the hang out it, and he's only had a couple days," he agreed softly. Though he didn't meet her gaze, Musica could feel Elie's gaze on him.

"Musica, make sure that he doesn't let all this whole being a prince thing get to his head, OK? Something tells me that he'd do backflips to appease someone," she said after a bit. Musica turned to her, finally meeting her gaze. She had the same sort of flare he had seen in Reina; cute and innocent looking, iron willed personality.

He grinned. "And just what would you know about royal politics?" he asked, smirking at her. He expected her to simply grin and tell him 'nothing', but instead, she merely gave him a strange smile.

"More than you would think."

~x~

Author's Note: Ooooh, that was certainly a lot different than the usual ending, now wasn't it? Now you all know just why I wanted to throw something at my computer. Sigh. Oh well. The plot is coming along very nicely, as you can see.  
Now, who will be the next one to see Elie and immediately think something's different about her? xP Nobody knows! Not even me!  
Hope you all enjoyed.  
Also, I won't be able to post until after the 29th of June, because my family and I are driving up a couple states to visit family and stuff that we left behind we moved to where I live now. Yeah, no fun, I know. Sorry~


	11. Chapter: wait, this isn't a chapter!

Upside Down

~x~

**Chapter…wait, this isn't a chapter!**

Unfortunately, as I'm sure you can all guess, this is not the eleventh chapter. I'm sorry, but updates are being put on a very short hiatus, due to an absence in availability to my computer documents. I could always put the file on a USB card, but that'd be extremely rude.

Anyways, the reason behind this short hiatus is because my family and I are driving up to visit our family in New York. Obviously, I won't be able to write on the computer and post anything, so I'm giving this formal notification before we leave. We'll be leaving early tomorrow morning, and we'll be home late the 29th. I will try and get the newest chapter on the 30th, or the 1st of July.

I'm terribly sorry for this. Really, I am. I'll most likely spend all my free time writing in the notebooks I'm bringing along, so it's not like I'm suddenly turning my back on everyone.

Sigh.

I'll miss you all for the time I'm gone. (: Don't forgot about me!

~x~


	12. Chapter 11: The Mysterious  Thing?

Upside Down

~x~

Author's Note: Sigh. After last chapter, I don't know if I have the energy to continue writing…Haru and Celia engaged…UGH. (I hate hate hate HATE this pairing!) Bleh. Oh well. At least _I'm_ the only one that knows what's gonna happen in later chapters. Mwuhahaha.

This chapter is gonna be split up different than the past ones; it's going to be the lesson with Deerhound, but it's also going to ne the following Saturday. Sorry if that upsets anyone.

Guess who makes an appearance in this chapter, and from all the chapters hereon?

Enjoy~

~x~

**Chapter Eleven: The Mysterious…Thing**

"Get your lazy ass up!" shouted a very irritated Julia. Haru groaned in reply, which resulted in him being flipped out of bed. Haru rubbed his eyes, glaring up at her sleepily. She was standing over him dangerously, her hands placed on her wide hips.

The prince knew exactly why she was so angry. "What did I do?" he whined anyways, pushing himself off the floor and sitting up. The blonde snorted, steam appearing from her nostrils. Haru did a double take, but whatever steam he had seen was gone; just an extremely angry Julia.

"Oh, you know _exactly_ what you did," she told him, bending over him to glare at him closer. "Explain to me what the _hell_ was going through your brain when you agreed to marry that _bimbo_!"

Haru scowled. "I was thinking that I really liked Celia, and that it would help unite the countries against this so-called looming war!" he defended, rubbing his eyes again. "I get it, you don't like her. Let and Musica probably don't like her all that much either," he added quickly, cutting her off, "but can you at least _try_ to make it look like you don't want to beat her against a wall or something?"

For a few seconds, the two simply glared at one another. "Damn it," Julia swore finally, straightening up and stepping away from him slightly, "damn it, Haru, you're too much like Gale!" The prince sighed in relief, and stood up.

"Thanks," he said happily, yawning again. "Anyways, I see Musica told you the happy news. Who else knows?"

Julia considered for a little bit. "The entire castle. But, we've all been sworn into secrecy from telling the general populace," she said casually, leaning against the beam from Haru's bed. The prince stared at her with wide eyes; his mouth popped open, causing Julia to smirk. "Oh, you didn't think it would spread that fast?" she teased, chuckling, "Kid, you're the prince of Symphonia and you're engaged to the princess of Mildesta. It's a wonder that the populace doesn't know about it."

Haru took a deep breath and silently counted to ten. "Right," he said softly, heading off to leave. "Thanks for…waking me up. I think," he said to her passively, grinning at her expression. She watched as he brushed past her, heading out of his bedroom and into his dressing room.

Just as he was running through one of the shelves, the door opened behind him, causing him to nearly fall. "A-ah! I'm sorry, Prince-sama!" cried his maid, her hand jumping to her mouth. Haru grinned at her, waving away her apology. "I was told to come in and make sure you were ready. Sir Deerhound is getting impatient," she explained, her face still red.

The prince sighed, grabbing the nearest pair of slacks and a plain green tunic. "I don't even get to eat?" he whined, turning away from her and tugging off his top. Behind him, he heard Belnika give a slight gasp and the sounds of her turning around quickly.

"I think he wants you to report immediately to him on the grounds. I'll escort you, if you'd like," she explained, her voice slightly quieter. Haru scowled at the opposite wall, and continued to dress himself. It didn't bother him that he was changing while she was in the room – he had done the same thing with Cattleya when he was younger, so as long as she didn't turn around until he said so, they were both relatively fine with it.

"Bah. I'm gonna have to wake up earlier from now," he muttered to himself as he finishing tying the sash around his bottoms. "Alright, I'm all ready, Belnika!" the prince called cheerfully, stepping forward to leave. She turned around, curtsied at him politely and the two were off.

Conversation between the two was simple; she was so quiet and reserved, it was hard to really initiate a conversation. So, after a while, the two lapsed into a slightly awkward silence as they headed towards the grounds. Once they got there, Belnika have a curtsy and vanished back into the castle, leaving Haru on his own.

Thankfully for the prince, it was quite clear where he needed to go; Deerhound was standing some hundred feet away, his back facing Haru. Quickly, the prince ran towards him, stopping behind him. "Hey, Deerhound," he said cheerfully, grinning at the Knight.

"I want you to do twenty five pushups," answered the man, turning around and staring at him flatly. Haru stared back up at him in confusion, which only caused a slight flicker of anger to cross his usually pleasant face. "Did I stutter? Twenty five pushups," he repeated, crossing his bulking arms against his chest. Haru blinked in surprise for a second before nodding, and dropping to the ground and lying flat. With a deep breath, Haru pushed his body up, balancing on his toes.

Because of the manual work that he had to do, Haru was in fairly good shape. But, he had never really done a pushup before besides as a joke, so he began to have trouble around the twentieth one. When he completed all twenty five, he dropped to the ground, panting. "Not bad. Now give me thirty sit-ups," commanded the Knight, his arms still crossed against his chest. Haru nodded heavily, flipping over and bending his knees slightly so they were in the air.

"Will you…hold my feet?" panted the prince, glancing at the Knight. Deerhound stared down at him for a second before kneeling down and grabbing his feet tightly, pushing them against the ground. Haru gave him a smile as a thank you, and begin to do the exercise.

Like the pushups, they started off easy, but slowly became harder and harder as he did each one. When he finished, he collapsed onto his back, panting heavily. "Get up," directed Deerhound, releasing his feet and standing. From where he was on the ground, Haru stared at him in disbelief, but the Knight showed no signs of joking. With a groan, he picked himself up and unsteadily stood next to him. "See that tree down there?" the older one asked, pointing to a large tree off to the distance. Haru nodded slowly, and the Knight grinned. "Run there and back. I'll time you."

Haru's mouth popped open. "You've gotta be kidding me," he whined, looking back down at the tree. "Can't I have a couple minutes to rest first?"

The Knight leaned forward so that the two were eye level. "This isn't like your other classes, Prince," he said softly, "You might have gotten some build by manual labor, but you aren't near where you need to be in order to be a swordsman. Now," he said, straightening up, "run."

Immediately, Haru took off at a jog. He knew that Deerhound was timing him, checking to see how fast he could run, but he didn't care. He was tired, which is what he suspected was the point of doing the pushups and sit-ups. Panting, he tapped the tree and turned around, heading back towards the knight.

As soon as he was back where he started, Haru collapsed onto the ground, panting heavily. "That time was horrible!" said Deerhound from above him, "If you were in battle and your only option was to get the hell away from the enemy, you'd have gotten killed!"

"Yeah, because if I'm in a battle with someone, I'm just gonna drop to the ground and do sit-ups and pushups!" snapped Haru, glaring up at him, "If you had given me a second to rest, I would have been able to run there and back no problem!"

Deerhound glared right back at him for a second before bursting out into laughter. "Nice one, kiddo," he said in his usual pleasantness, offering the boy a hand up, which Haru took gratefully, and confusedly. "See, I'm supposed to bump up your strength, but there are more forms of strength than just physical. You had the strength to stand up to me while dead tired, when I very easily could have beaten you to death," he explained, clapping Haru on the back. "Take a breather and we'll start the real course."

For the next several hours, Haru was forced to do various different strength-training exercises. He ran laps, did a series of workout methods, and was even instructed to lift a giant rock on the grounds. By the time Musica came to get him for dinner, Haru's entire body throbbed, but he felt more like jelly than a human.

"Alright, I'll leave him with you, Musica," Deerhound said happily, waving as he headed towards the castle, leaving Haru sprawled out on the ground and Musica standing over him.  
Before Musica could make any taunts at all, Haru mustered up the strength to speak. "Get…Belnika. Tell her to…bring me…food," he panted out weakly, closing his eyes, "Lots…and…lots of…food."

Musica snorted, but looked around and called out to the nearest servant. "Go find the chick named Belnika, and tell her to bring out a giant plate of food for my good friend Prince Haru here," he ordered, grinning happily, "Also, go fetch King Let, Queen Julia, and Queen Reina for me. Tell em' to bring their dinners. And when you've done that, bring me back my own plate of food. I don't care what's on it. Just bring me some food."

The servant bowed deeply, and took off running towards the castle. "I'll save you the energy of going and finding some dinner mates, buddy," the older one said cheerfully, sitting down next to him. Haru gave a weak thumbs' up as an answer, which only earned him another round of laughter. "You know, for a farm boy, you sure don't have the endurance I'd have expected," Musica said casually, poking him stomach.

"You don't do…laps or…pushups on a…farm," gasped out Haru, sitting up with a loud groan. "God, that was the worst class I've ever had in my life," he complained, leaning forward on one hand. He had caught his breath by now, but he was still weak and sore. "I'm gonna be sore for_ever_!"

Musica grinned cheerfully, clapping the boy on the back. "You sure are, kid. No more running down to the village whenever you damn well feel like it, huh?" he teased, smirking. "You know, your friend Elie seemed kinda down yesterday." Haru sighed, nodding slightly. "Think it had anything to do with the death of King Valentine? That would probably make the entire country sad, considering that Resha's been M. I. A."

Haru nodded in agreement again. "That's the only thing I can really think of that would make her sad," he admitted, "If I had asked, I doubt she would have told me."

"Yeah, she seems a little distant," noted Musica with a shrug. Haru sighed in agreement, and the two lapsed into a comfortable silence, patiently waiting for their food and friends to come.  
"So, what's goin' on with you an' Reina?" asked Haru casually after a while, watching his friends' reaction with amusement. Musica suddenly tensed up, and he refused to meet Haru's eyes, looking down at his hands.

For several seconds, the older one simply fidgeted, refusing to answer. "Me and Reina? What makes you think there's anything goin' on between us?" he finally asked, his expression cold and distant. Haru grinned happily, simply shrugging. "Good. 'Cause there isn't," he snapped, glaring at his friend meaningfully, which only caused Haru's grin to widen.

"Getting kinda defensive, don't ya' think?" he asked nonchalantly, smirking as his friend froze again. "Relax," he said quickly, placing a hand on his shoulder weakly, "I'm just messin' with ya'."

Again, the two lapsed into silence. "You seen Celia today?" asked Musica suddenly, his eyes turned towards the castle. Haru stared at him briefly before turning towards the castle himself, squinting to see what his friend was staring at.

"Haven't had a chance to. Why?" he asked, straining to see who his friend was staring at. Finally, the prince realized that it was a five who's, rather than just one. "Oh, good," he said happily, "food."

Musica grinned as well, flailing his arms in the air to get their attention. "Hey! Over here!" he screamed, too lazy to get up and signal them that way. However, their friends got the message and began to head over to them, slowly becoming more and more visible as they approached.

"You guys are seriously that lazy?" questioned Julia once she was visible. Silently, Belnika and the servant that Musica sent to fetch everyone gave the two their plates and scurried off, leaving the royalty to dine out on the grounds. "With Haru here, it's a bit understandable. He just spent the day with Deerhound, so no wonder he couldn't move enough to get his own damn plate."

Rather than answer, the two princes dug into their food, not caring enough to check what was on it. "Let," Reina said instead, deciding not to watch the boys as they pigged out, "is it true that Makai is undergoing a Civil War?"

As Haru expected, all three of the Makai royal family froze. With nervous eyes, the king and queen exchanged a look. "I would not go so far to call it a Civil War," Let finally said softly, his gaze as hard as usual, "Some of the people want a war to happen. Some people don't. And some, as is always the case, are taking advantage of everything."

The green haired queen nodded, understanding. Haru, however, did not understand. "Wait," he said, causing all eyes on him, "I don't understand. Who do your people wanna go to war with? And how are some people taking advantage of the situation?"

"You haven't been in power long, so you can't have known," Julia commented, giving him a rare smile, "but the world is itching for war. Raregroove, Vulk, Yuugeki, Désespoir, and Kampf have been raising armies for years to take control. Of course, other nations are involved, but the biggest ones are what we're most worried about. Right now, Mildea is undetermined, but we think that Haja might go to their side. Elnadia, Mildesta, and Makai would be the opposing forces. I suppose if Resha ever gets back to Elie Village, they could join, but I doubt it; they're too small to really participate freely in any war. And, of course, Symphonia would be on our side, if you decide."

Haru stared at them blankly, completely overtaken. "Well, yeah! Of course I'd be with you guys!" he said after a second, gathering his bearings. "But, why do those other countries wanna go to war?" he asked softly, hating his ignorance.

Musica sighed, turning away slightly. Reina and Julia stared at him, but Let focused on him. "It's all because of an ancient war between Symphonia and Raregroove. I suppose Raregroove has just been recruiting other countries that aren't so fond of your land, and that's why it's become so big. Raregroove and Symphonia have never really been on good terms, though the previous king's were best friends, even in death. It's said that the war was caused by legendary stones, called Sinclair and Rave. However, no one can prove this due to the absence of both stones, and the vast amount of time that's passed since the war."

Haru nodded slowly. "So, Raregroove wants to take over the world," he said steadily, "and it's recruiting other countries to help it. But, Symphonia keeps on getting in the way? With help." With what looked like pride, Let nodded.

"You've just laid out the current situation of the world better than any textbook could," praised Julia lazily, finishing her food and laying back. Reina finished as well, but stayed straight up, lighting rubbing Musica's arm. Haru looked down at his plate of food and sighed – he wasn't hungry anymore.

The world was on the bridge of war. Why hadn't Symphonia been having civil wars and rationing and all that stuff? Maybe because they didn't need to have a civil war, they had been Raregrooves enemy in the past, so why would that change? It wouldn't. Not after the way King had killed Gale, his father. They were just going to go to war with the knowledge that everyone would agree? That seemed so…stupid though. To Haru, anyways.

"Hey, what's that?" Musica suddenly called, interrupting Haru's thoughts. Immediately, all eyes turned to where he was staring. Reina complained about not being able to see anything, but the others seemed to see exactly what he was looking at.

On the lush green of Haru's grounds, was a speck of white. "It looks like…snow," commented Julia softly, her head tilting to the side. Musica and Let agreed, but Haru just stared at it.

"I'm gonna go check it out," he declared, standing up shakily. His body had recovered, mostly, from the brutal work out, but he was still jelly-like, and rather sore. Ignoring this fact, he began to move towards the white speck as quickly as he could, biting back a groan all the while. The others called something out to him, but he ignored them and no one followed him.

"Whoa," he breathed as he got closer to it. The thing was pure white, shaped a little bit like a dog. But, if it was a dog, it was by far the strangest dog Haru had ever seen in his life; his paws were like flattened sphere's, with no nails or claws to speak of, and his nose was a long orange spike, maybe an inch in diameter at most. His eyes were like large buttons, and what looked like thin eyebrows were turned down in an almost permanent worried expression. The creature was also shaking heavily, sitting on the ground and petting a…slug.

Curiously, Haru reached forward and poked its' forehead, immediately pulling his hand back. Instead of attacking him, the creature gave out a small noise that sounded like 'puun' or 'plue' – Haru wasn't sure – and fell backwards, its back legs sticking straight up in the air. "Whoa, hey," he cried, suddenly picking the thing up by the head and setting him right side up, "sorry little guy. I didn't think you'd fall over like that."

The creature just gave out its little noise again, holding out its' left paw for Haru. "Nice to meet you," chuckled Haru, carefully shaking its' hand. "Now, what the hell _are_ you?" he asked, eyes narrowing in confusion.

"Hey! It's a Plue Dog!" cried Reina from behind him, causing the prince to lose his balance and fall to the ground. Thankfully, the 'dog' (Haru heavily doubted that this thing could be a dog, but…) didn't land under Haru in any way, so it was still safe. The three others quickly joined her, running faster than Haru would have suspected any of them to be able to run, bending over to examine the creature.

Julia grinned, stroking its' cheek gently. "I didn't think I'd ever get the chance to see a Plue Dog! These little guys are rare even in Elie Village!" she said tenderly. Haru stared at her as if he had never seen her before, but kept his mouth shut.

"What's he doing all the way over here? They don't usually like anyone that isn't an Elian," questioned Musica, standing straight with his arms crossed, obviously too 'cool' to be awed over the creature. Let shrugged, standing next to him in a similar fashion, but his dark eyes were light and loving as he stared down at them all – though that might have had something to do with Julia, and not the Plue Dog.

"What the hell is a Plue Dog?" asked Haru, setting the little guy in his lap. He didn't know why, but he didn't want this creature to run away. However, it didn't seem to have any ideas of running away, instead just sat in Haru's lap blankly, shaking still.

Reina and Julia exchanged a look of amusement. "It's a very, very rare breed of dog that's found only in Elie Village. I dunno if you can ever call it a breed, actually, considering they're a mutation of an actual breed. One comes along, and the parents abandon it, so the little guy has to travel all around the world in order to find the person that its' supposed to be with. Most of them don't make it, so they die, which is what makes them so rare. I guess two are born every five years, by some weird recessive gene," explained the green haired one, stroking its' cheek. "Ooh, what I'd give to have one appear on my grounds…"

"How does the person know who the Plue Dog is 'supposed' to be with?" asked Haru curiously, placing a hand on the little guys' head.

As if to answer his question, the dog gave its' strange noise and suddenly reached forward, his nose piercing through the slacks Haru was wearing, through his skin, and making a good sized hole in his thigh. Immediately, tears welled up in his eyes, and he jumped up, trying to get the thing off of him. His nose-horn-thing was about a quarter of the way into his thigh, and he seemed completely unperturbed about Haru's flailing. "Someone pull it out!" he screamed, unable to get a good grip on his little body.

Suddenly, the dog just fell out, his nose not even the least bit covered in blood. Panting, Haru looked down at his leg and realized that no mark was left on his thigh. With eyes wide, he groped around the area that the dog had stabbed, but he felt no blood, or blemish of any kind. "What the hell…?" he asked, staring down at the little thing.

The others around him were staring wide eyed, their mouths open slightly. "_That's_ how you tell. A Plue Dog cannot draw blood from the person. If that thing had stabbed one of us, it would have been a gaping hole," explained Let softly, trying to recollect his manner. Haru stared at him in awe and disbelief before looking back the Plue Dog, who was petting another insect.

"Wait, so that thing came all the way from Elie Village," he said slowly, "to find…_me_?"

Everyone nodded, grinning at him happily. "You gotta give him a name!" squealed Reina happily, picking up the creature and holding him against her chest tightly. The thing didn't seem to mind – Haru was slowly becoming aware of how oblivious to life the little creature was – but instead simply gave out it's weird nose.

"What about 'Shabutaru'?"

Slowly, all eyes turned to Let, who had spoken. He didn't seem flustered at all, instead rather proud that he had come up with a name like that. Haru sighed, prying the little guy away from Reina and holding him in front of him. "You like the name 'Shabutaru'?" he asked, much to the surprise of those around him. The dog stared back at him blankly before wildly shaking his head. "How about I just call ya' 'Plue'?"

"Puun!" the dog cried, nodding its' head just as wildly. Haru grinned, and placed the guy on his head.

"Nice name, Let, but I'm just gonna stick with Plue," he said casually, leaning back on his hands. The others exchanged a look, but shrugged knowingly.

**XOX**

The next two days passed without anything more exciting. Haru spent as much free time as he could with his fiancé, just talking and walking around the grounds. It was like a dream come true to be near someone as beautiful as she was, he thought. His lessons with Clea and Shiba passed without consequence. Shiba had even begun to teach him the basics of swordplay, though Haru still wasn't very good at it. Alpine came every day for one hour before bed each night, and Haru thought that his Elian was coming along nicely; he could say at least four decent sized sentences now.

The next Saturday, Haru was up and dressed before even Belnika could come in to place in clean laundry. With Plue on his heels, the prince ran down through the castle, not even bothering to grab breakfast. He was still sore, but it wasn't nearly as bad as he thought it would be; apparently, because he did have some muscle mass, the work out wouldn't be nearly as awful had he been toothpick thin like he had been. Well, he was still scrawny, but he was strong.

"Ready to meet Elie, Plue?" he asked as they ran, grinning down at the dog. For an animal, Plue could run surprisingly fast. And he very rarely left Haru's side, except during the lesson with Clea on Thursday; she had shooed him away indefinitely.

In response, Plue simply gave his normal reply. The others didn't seem to understand anything that Plue was saying when he made those noises, but Haru understood him each time. Not that it was especially difficult to figure out; it came so clearly to him.

Once they reached the stable, Plue jumped on Haru's head – a favorite resting place for him – and Haru jumped on his horse, setting off. The stable keeper had realized that Haru had grown attached to the horse, and told him that its' name was Gale, after his father, and that he would take special care for it if he wished. Haru had thanked him for doing so, and accepted the gift of a personal horse.

When he reached the village, he did as he always did, and tied Gale up outside the village before heading in. As he usually was, Haru was garbed in peasant clothes, trying to fit back in with all the people he had been around his entire life. As he walked, he waved to the people and they waved back, no bows or curtsies. Gemma must have told them not to – while he was just a bartended, Gemma was a bit like the village leader. In the past, even the King had noted this. Or so the man claimed.

"Haru!"

Immediately, Haru turned around and grinned. "Hey, Elie," he called, waving. Plue waved from atop his head as well, but Elie didn't seem to notice. She was standing near a man with orange hair and scars decorating his face. He had on a black cloak covering the rest of his body, but a sword stuck out from his right hip.

Slowly, he began to approach them, tense. This man was definitely not Sieg, nor his son Niebel, but someone else. "Hello," he greeted politely, looking between Elie and the man.

The man stared at him with his one open orange eye, his expression unreadable. "Prince Haru," he said curtly, his voice deep and distant. It made Haru want to crawl back into bed, but he refrained from showing any such emotion. One of the things that Shiba had taught him yesterday was to never show fear. Not at first, anyways.

"Haru, this is Sir Shuda. He's a friend of Sieg Hart's, so while Sieg is away, Shuda has been staying with me," Elie introduced, glancing at him meaningfully. The prince nodded, and held out his hand to shake, which Shuda shook with his right hand. The cool feel of metal appeared on Haru's own right hand, but he made no movement to show that he realized this.

_What has this man been through that has hurt him in such a way?_

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Sir Shuda," he said kindly, all smiles, "I was wondering if it'd be quite alright for me to spend the day with Elie, as I did last Saturday and several other times since." Elie scowled slightly, crossing her arms against her chest at the request. Shuda however, smiled slightly, and nodding.

"Certainly, Prince," he said, turning to Elie, "Do not forget what we spoke about last evening." The brunette nodded, grabbing Haru's arm and leading him. Haru allowed himself to be dragged behind, slightly shocked; the man had the exact same accept as Elie did.

"Let's go," she whispered, trying to drag him as far away from him as she could. Haru nodded, turning and running next to her, knowing exactly where they were headed. "When did you get a Plue Dog?" she asked as they ran, not taking her eyes off the area in front of her. Haru grinned, and didn't answer her until the two reached the lake, which Haru suspected would be their meeting place.

"Wednesday. He kinda appeared on the grounds, and we determined that he was supposed to go to me," he explained breathlessly, collapsing on a large rock. Elie fell next to him, plucking Plue off his head and holding him tightly. "Cute, isn't he?"

Elie didn't say anything, just staring down at him. "Yeah," she finally said, her eyes growing cloudy. "Did you know that these dogs live forever?" she asked, looking back up at him. Haru shook his head, surprised. "Well, they don't die naturally. If someone cut off his head, he'd be dead, but if you just let him live with people, he'll never ever die. Kinda cool, huh?"

The two continued to talk about various things, simply content with just being around one another and talking, and watching as Plue tried to swim and do other things that he very obviously couldn't. She seemed happier than she had last time he saw her, but there was still that underling sadness that Haru knew she wouldn't reveal to him, no matter how hard he tried. Right now, anyways. Haru had already promised that he'd get to the bottom of Elie's secrets.

What he didn't know, however, was whether he was doing this for himself or for Elie.

~x~

Author's Note: Not the way I wanted to end this, but the chapter's already late and I have a line waiting for the computer behind me. Gah. Don't hate me, please. I'd really like some feedback on this chapter, 'cause I'm a little…iffy about it. Just tell me if it was up to my usual standard or not, OK?


	13. Chapter 12: Saturday News

Upside Down

~x~

Author's Note: Yay for shaky updates!

Not even going to lie; this chapter's a bit of filler. Elie and Haru talk, some more people show up, and him and Celia spend the day together. Sigh. Hopefully the next couple chapter's will be more interesting.

Anyways, enjoy.

~x~

**Chapter Twelve: Saturday News**

"So, how come Sieg and Niebel had to go back to Elie Village?" asked Haru, breaking a silence they had elapsed into. Elie was sitting with her feet dipped in the water, while the prince was sitting on the large rock behind her. In her lap was Plue, resting peacefully in her arms.

For several minutes, the brunette remained quiet. "He's a very important person in Elie Village, and he's been away for longer than he should have been," she finally said, not taking her eyes off the lake in front of her. Haru stared down at her, frustration welling up in his stomach. It was like she was just taunting him with her secrets; holding them in front of him, but pulling them away before he could get more than a quick glance.

The prince sighed, leaning back on his palms. "Really? What about Shuda? Is he really a knight?" he asked, trying to prompt her into telling him more about herself.

"Yep. My parents and him were really close, so he's kinda like an Uncle to me," she said, suddenly growing distant. Though she still wasn't facing him, Haru could tell that something had changed. "When I was younger, after my mom had taught me to speak three different languages, she passed away from some illness. My dad was devastated, but he managed to keep going because of me," whispered the brunette, pulling her knees out of the water and hugging them to her chest, "But, when I left, he got sick with grief. Sometime on my journey from there to here, he…passed on. That's one of the reasons Shuda came here, to tell me that my dad was dead."

Haru stared at her, his mouth open. As her explanation went on, her voice steadily became shakier and shakier, until her words were almost indistinguishable. Slowly, Haru slid down from the rock and sat next to her, stretching out his legs. "You know," he said softly, staring out at the lake, "just because your parents are gone doesn't mean that you're alone."

Elie looked up, but the prince didn't meet her gaze. "You still have me. And Sieg, Niebel, and Shuda. And Gemma likes you alright, too, so he's gonna be there too," he continued, smiling softly as he turned to face her, "I know it's hard now, but things will get better. Maybe not for another year, or decade, or fifty years, but they will. No matter how bad things get, they always get better. Sometimes, that's all they _can_ do."

The brunette nodded, tears falling from her eyes quickly. "If I had…stayed," she said, pulling Plue from between her knees and chest and setting him down next to her, "If I hadn't l-left, he'd still be…alive."

"Yeah, but then you wouldn't have met me," offered Haru, wrapping his arm around her shoulder. "Don't let the guilt you're feeling take over your mind. I know this probably isn't what you wanna hear, but…it was just your dad's time to go," he told her softly, gazing down at her intensely as she rested her head against his shoulder, shaking slightly, "It isn't like he'd blame you for his death. No parent could ever."

Again, Elie nodded, hiccupping slightly. Haru didn't say any more, and instead just held her tightly, trying to convey a silent message to her. After some time, her shakes finally ended, and she pulled away. Like the last time he had seen her, her cheeks were slightly swollen, and her eyes were puffy. Obviously, Elie was among the few that could cry and not make a complete mess of herself in the process. "Th-thanks," she said, wiping her eyes. Haru grinned at her, shrugging.

"Anytime. What do you think friends are for?" asked the prince casually, pulling his arm away and leaning against the rock. Elie sniffled, wiping her eyes again. The prince sighed, picking up Plue by his head and dangling him in front of her, "Come on, Elie, cheer up. I know it's hard, but you're gonna make Plue all sad if you keep on crying!"

The dog made its' strange noise, which caused Elie to give out a watery giggle. "Well, I wouldn't want to upset the great Plue!" she said weakly, laughing. Haru laughed with her, and even Plue seemed to give out a little chuckle, which only caused the two to laugh harder.

Soon, the peasant and the prince were on their backs, clutching their stomachs with tears streaming down their eyes as they laughed. They laughed until their sides and stomachs and throats hurt from laughing for so long, slowly sobering up. "I'm so happy I met you, Haru," she said, laying on the bank of the lake with her arms sprayed out around her. Haru propped himself up on his elbow, watching her from where he was laying.

It was impossible not to see the beauty that Elie possessed, but it caught Haru off guard now. Her normally pale cheeks were rosy with all the laughing – and crying – she had been doing. Her torso was heaving with each breath she took, rising and falling quickly. Short golden-brown hair was fanned out behind her head. Despite all of her secrets, Haru knew that they'd be friends forever. Any girl that could accept him as prince without question, speak eleven different languages, and could laugh with him over the strangest creature in existence was A-OK in Haru's book. "Yeah, I'm glad I met you too," he said breathlessly, grinning at her. She grinned back, wiping her eyes free from any tears.

Suddenly, Haru felt the urge to tell her about his engagement. Tell her that he was falling in love with Princess Celia, and that he wasn't sure what to do. It wasn't like he could very well talk to Musica or Let or Julia about it – the latter being because, well, it was Julia. "Hey, Elie, how do you know if a girl likes you more than a friend?" asked the prince slowly, his face enflaming.

Elie looked up, but Haru refused to meet her gaze. "Uh, well, I guess…if she hangs around you a lot. I mean, it's different for everyone," she said curiously, grinning suddenly, "Why? Don't tell me – there's some beautiful princess that you've fallen for?"

"Forget I even asked," muttered Haru, covering his eyes with his arm. Elie giggled, crawling over to him and began poking his side, causing him to sigh. "Alright, I'll tell you," he said, batting her hand away, "Alpine decided that I needed to have a fiancé, so me and Princess Celia are kinda…engaged. Anyways, I really like her, but I dunno if she feels the same."

For a second, Elie just stared at him, causing him to fidget around on the ground under her gaze. "Wow, Princess Celia?" she repeated, sounding amazed, "That's really cool, Haru! I would never wanna have an arranged marriage, but I heard that Celia is really pretty, and really nice."

Now it was the prince's turn to stare at her. "You're kidding. You really think she's nice?" he asked in surprise, his mouth hanging open, "Because just about everyone else that knows thinks I'm making a huge mistake!" Elie grinned, shrugging slightly.

"It doesn't matter what they think," said the brunette after a while, turning towards the lake, "All that matters is that _you_ think it isn't a mistake. If you like her, and she likes you, then it'll all work out in the end." Haru stared at her; she had said it so casually, so obviously, it was a wonder that he had even missed it in the first place. He grinned at her, nodding. "I'm really happy for you, Haru. But, why'd you agree to it? It isn't like you've got to get married anytime soon. You have your whole life ahead of you," she said, hugging her knees to his chest again.

Haru shrugged. "Well, I really like her. And, apparently there's this whole big war thing goin' on, and it's best to unite the countries," he explained casually, sighing. Not meeting his gaze, he picked up Plue and placed him on his head. "I really hate to cut this short," he told her apologetically, "but there are some more people comin' over to the castle today, and it'd be really bad if I wasn't there when they arrived."

The brunette smiled at him, shrugging. "No, I understand. Duty comes first, right?" she asked, shrugging. Haru shrugged as well, standing up and offering her a hand, "I'm gonna sit out here for a while." Haru stared down at her curiously, but her brown eyes were fixed on the lake in front of her.

"Elie, are you sure you'll be alright?" he asked worriedly, crouching down to her level. Plue agreed from atop his head, but she didn't meet either of their gazes.

"I'll be fine. I've just been thinking," she said, stopping short. Haru stared at her intently, refusing to accept a 'never mind' for this one. Elie seemed to know this, but she still didn't turn and face him or answer. "I've been thinking about moving. Back to Elie Village," she finally said, turning to stare Haru in the eyes, "But, if I do, you'll never see me again."

The prince's mouth popped open, and even Plue seemed to disagree with that. "No! Elie, you can't move!" he said, grabbing her shoulders, "If you leave, I'll be stuck up in the castle all the time 'cause I won't be able to come down and see you all the time." The brunette shrugged, not meeting his gaze. "Elie, you can't just leave me behind! I mean, I know that you left for a reason and all that – even if I don't know what it is – but, wouldn't it be kinda useless to go back so soon?"

Elie sighed, looking back up into his eyes again. Though not the first time, Haru noticed a great sadness in those brown orbs. A sadness so deep and old that he wasn't sure if Elie even knew what the reason behind it was. "I know. I've just been thinking a lot," she said softly, smiling slightly, "I wouldn't want to leave you. Your friendship means more to me than that."

Haru have her a half smile, pulling her into a hug. "Then don't leave. You have to see me crowned King!" he said, smiling fully as her arms slowly reached up his back and hugged him back, "How about this? You stay until I'm crowned and all that, and then you can think about leaving. Until then, you gotta stay here." The brunette laughed slightly, her body shaking against his.

"Alright. It's a deal," she said, pulling away and grinning at him. Haru grinned back, releasing her and turning to leave. "If you have a ball for it, will you take me? Not as a date or anything," she added quickly, "just as a guest. Like, send me an invitation."

The prince stopped where he was, some five feet away from her. "A ball?" he repeated, turning to face her again, blinking. He hadn't even thought of having a ball to celebrate his crowning, but now that she mentioned it, it made a lot of sense. "Yeah," said Haru with a wide grin, "yeah, if I have a ball, I'll be sure you're on the guest list."

"Puun!" agreed Plue from his head, waving at her. Elie laughed, and waved back, sitting down on the rock again.

"See ya' next Saturday, Elie!" called the prince as he ran away, Plue bouncing on his head. The girl grinned, waving back again as she watched as they ran away.

**XOX**

By the time Haru finally reached the castle again, it was just touching supper time. Unlike the other times he had ridden down to the village, he has a crowd of people waiting for him by the stable. "Hey," he called happily, waving as them all.

"Haru-chan!" squealed his fiancé, waving happily. Next to her stood a somber Julia, and a tense Reina, neither of who looked as though this was a pleasant happenstance. "Haru-chan, I missed you so much! I didn't even get a chance to say goodbye to you before you rode on down," Celia said, crossing her arms against her chest.

Haru grinned, hopping off the horse and handing the reigns to the attendant, gently grabbing her shoulders. "I'm sorry. I should've told you I'd be gone for a while," he said apologetically. Plue didn't make any noise of agreement, but Haru didn't need a translation; the dog didn't like Celia very much, as she was rather afraid of him. Julia just watched him, sticking her tongue out and pretending to gag herself with her finger, causing Reina to silently giggle into her palm.

"Haru, we all need to talk to you. About different things," said Reina finally, placing her hands on her wide hips, "Starting with most important, I think Julia should go first. Celia, do you mind if the two of us gave them some privacy?" she asked, smiling sweetly at Celia.

The blue haired princess, however, pouted and crossed her arms against her chest. "Why is Julia's most important? I _am_ his fiancé," she pointed out, glaring at the blonde, who twitched slightly. Reina sighed, placing a hand on the younger girls' shoulders and shooting Julia a meaningful look over her pale shoulder.

"Because what I have to talk to him about is about the freakin' _war_ going on in my country. I know that you don't give a damn about Makai, but, I do," snapped the blonde, glaring at the younger girl. Reina sighed again, gently leading Celia away and out of earshot, giving Haru and Julia privacy. "The people that are against going to war just announced that they were going to fight against the government. They're willing to go through a Civil War, but not a war between any other countries," she said, sounding both bitter and defenseless, "I'm not asking for troops, or supplies, or anything like that. Haru, I'm asking for your support."

Haru stared at her, speechless. "Y-yeah," he finally said – after Plue gave a slight tug on his messy hair, "Of course. What do you mean by 'support', though, if you aren't asking for troops or supplies?"

Julia sighed in relief, not meeting his gaze. "We just need to formally say that, if asked, you _will_ supply with troops or supplies. A war between the citizens of Makai would be the last thing that we need at the moment. It would make us completely vulnerable to any other country that wants to take us over!" She continued on in a constant stream, but the rest of it wasn't in Symphonia, but in Makin. Haru watched her silently, waiting for to finish before he said anything.

"Julia," he said softly, placing a hand on her shoulder, "I'll do anything to help. Troops, supplies, war, it doesn't matter. You, and Let, and Musica are my friends. We don't always agree on things, but I'm still here for ya' guys."

The queen stared at him, her brown eyes wide in their shock. "Haru, that means the world to me," she said softly, grabbing his hand gently and bowing her head, "Let already left for Makai to try and dispel everything. He wanted to be here for your crowning, but, I don't think that will happen, given the circumstances."

Haru nodded, staring at her nervously. No matter how many times people treated him like royalty, Haru wasn't sure he'd ever get used to it. "It's fine. Did Musica go back too?" he asked, sighing slightly as she released his hand and stood up straight.

"No. But, I will be. Let went ahead to estimate the situation, and I plan on leaving tonight to join him. Musica was going to stay behind after your crowning anyways, to help you out, so it won't be much different," she explained softly, sounding very un-Julia like. Personally, it rather scared Haru; she was so strong, so confident…it was shocking to hear a strong woman like her sound so defeated.

Again, the prince sighed. "That's fine. I understand," he said, grinning, "You just go and settle down your people, OK?" Julia looked up and smiled at him slightly. After a moment of hesitation, she threw her arms around him, hugging him tightly for a little bit. "Julia?"

"You're going to make a better King than any other Symphonian King," she told him in his ear gently, releasing him and heading off. "Let and I will try to make it up to see your crowning, but I don't think it'll happen," she said, halfway turned. Haru grinned, waving it away, causing the queen to smirk and roll her eyes. "Next time I see you, you better have grown up a little, alright?" Haru laughed, nodding.

For a few minutes, he watched as she headed towards the main doors of the castle, stopping to hug some silhouette before climbing into a carriage. "It's a shame that Let and her had to leave," said someone from his right. Immediately, Haru jumped, turning to her in shock. Queen Reina grinned, placing her hands on her wide hips casually, "Haru, I want to warn you about something. The people that will be here later today – Queen Jiero and King Medigo – they aren't on your side. They were loyal to King Raregroove before he died, and they've sworn loyalty to King Lucia, as did King Uta."

The prince watched her carefully. "How do you know this?" he asked slowly, his eyes narrowing. The queen grinned, her make-up stretching across her face as she did so.

"Because, while I haven't sworn loyalty to anyone, I'm in Lucia's circle of 'friends'. Haja is as well, but I highly doubt he'll swear fealty to anyone. King Doryu isn't on anyone's side but his own, but I highly doubt that'll stay resolute if that brat starts to talk to him. Queen Fumia is on your side, as is King Let, but you already know that."

Haru sighed, looking down at his hands. "When is Doryu coming, anyways? With Lucia, Uta, Haja, Fumia, Musica, and you here and Jiero and Medigo coming today, that's all we're missing, right?" he asked, scratching the back of his head.

Reina shrugged. "I doubt he'll come up at all, really. Maybe just for the actual crowning, but not before. He doesn't care much for the affairs of the world, really…just himself," she said, sounding rather bitter. The prince nodded, sighing again. "Hey, cheer up. If war does break out, Symphonia has allies and some of the best fighters in the world."

"I'm not worried about the country. Well, not really. It's more like, I don't have any clue what to do during war. I've gone my whole life without it, so it isn't like I know how to ration or prepare. I can hardly even fight!" he said, throwing his hands up in the air. Reina smiled tightly, waving away his worries.

"You aren't alone, Haru-chan!" cried Celia from behind him, her arms wrapping around his stomach suddenly. The prince flinched slightly, not really liking how she hung on him like this. "Fumia and I know all about war-time stuff, so we can help you out!" she cried, grinning at him. The prince smiled at her slightly, glancing to Reina, who was simply watching the two indifferently.

Haru grinned, wrapping an arm around her shoulder as well. "Yeah, you're right," he said, laughing slightly, "Sorry for being such a drag." Celia giggled, her pale cheeks slightly rosy from blush. Reina waved at them both, and started off, her high heels clicking against the pathway. "Oh, right," said Haru – after staring into Celia's blue eyes for a few seconds, transfixed, "You needed to talk to me about something?"

The princess nodded, her eyes suddenly going serious. "That girl you go down to see in the village, how long have you known her?" she asked slowly, not meeting his gaze. Haru stared at her in disbelief as she drew little designs on his shoulder; was she getting…jealous? Of Elie?

"I dunno. I met her, like, thirty minutes after I met you and Lucia," explained Haru gently, pulling away slightly and tilting her chin up so that she'd look into his eyes, "Don't worry. Elie and I are just friends. _You're_ the one I'm engaged to, not her." Celia nodded, smiling at him. The princess' expression suddenly changed, going from relief to…something more.

Before Haru knew what was happening, she was leaning forward. Her blue eyes had drifted closed peacefully, and before the prince could fully register what was happening, he felt her soft lips against his.

It wasn't elaborate. It was a simple pressing of lips together. But, it was enough to make Haru's heart go into haywire, to make his coloring change from tan to a strange orange-red. His purple eyes went wide, and he pulled away, staring at her in shock. "C-Celia…?" he stammered out, completely bewildered. The princess giggled, a blush decorating her cheeks as well.

"Well, we're engaged now, so we have to start doing all those coupley stuff!" she said, wrapping her arms around his neck. Haru continued to stare down at her in shock, blinking. Then, he leaned down and kissing her forehead, smiling at her softly.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," he agreed, grinning at her. The princess giggled, blushing brightly. Before either of them could say anything more, someone cleared their throat behind them, causing the young couple to jump apart and turn to see who had interrupted them. Though it really shouldn't have come as much of a surprise, Haru couldn't help but feet shocked. "M-Musica!"

The older prince stared at them both flatly, his brown eyes landing on Celia. For a few seconds, she stared back, and after muttering a goodbye to Haru, quickly left. "You're one piece of work, you know that?" asked Musica distastefully, shaking his head. "Can't really blame you, though. She is pretty cute, and you guys _are_ engaged."

Haru scowled at him, looking around for Plue. "Where did that little guy run off to?" he muttered, clearly avoiding the reason that Musica was here. "Did you see him at all?" asked the younger prince desperately, beginning to get worried.

"Dude, if that dog could make it all the way from Elie Village to Symphonia unhurt, he'll be fine," snapped Musica, walking forward and grabbing his shirt tightly. "Get your mind back to where it belongs, damn it!" Haru stared at him, grabbing his wrist tightly to try and pull him off. "Jiero and Medigo are arriving soon, and with that brat Lucia here, they aren't just gonna accept you the way Let and Julia and I did!"

The younger one glared at him. "I _know_! Reina already came and told me!" he snapped, ripping away from him, "I get it! You're here to make sure I don't do anything stupid and accidentally turn over Symphonia to Raregroove, but I'm not a baby! I _understand_ what's going on."

Haru and Musica continued to glare at each other silently until the latter sighed, turning away. "Yeah, I know," he muttered, rubbing the back of his head, "I'm just all tense 'cause of what's goin' on over in Makai. Sorry, dude." Haru grinned, waving it away. "We should probably head on over to the main entrance; Jiero and Medigo should be here any minute."

Nervously, Haru followed him as he walked, still worried about Plue. He knew that the little creature didn't care for Celia, but that didn't explain his sudden disappearance. Musica was right, however, Plue _had_ made it all the way from Elie Village to Symphonia unhurt. "There they are!" called Musica as they got to the main entrance, pointing to two of the most elaborate carriages Haru had ever seen.

The first one was the color of ice – if ice even had a color – with streamers of silk blowing as it rode, and sapphires and diamonds lining each of the four windows and two doors. The second one was the color of fire, with black spikes coming out of the top and sides, and rubies lining the windows and doors as well. The first was being led by two white stallions, while the second was led by two black stallions. They couldn't have been more different, but Haru still felt the same about them – trouble.

Before either of them had stopped, two more people appeared next to them. "What the hell do you want, Lucia?" demanded Haru icily, glaring at the blonde. He didn't answer, instead simply staring at him indifferently. Uta scoffed, crossing his arms against his chest.

Without waiting for an answer, Haru turned back to the carriages, his eyes widening as the first one opened. Slowly, a woman that couldn't possibly be any older than Julia – however old _she_ was – stepped out, her colorless eyes sweeping over the crowd awaiting her. She was dressed in a light blue dress that went beyond her feet, with no designs or decorations on her except for a strange looking headset atop her white hair.

"Queen Jiero," said the prince kindly, stepping forward and offering a hand to help her off the carriage. She gazed down at him for a second, but took his hand in her pale one, carefully stepping off the carriage. "It is an honor to have you here, Queen," Haru continued, bowing slightly and kissing her hand.

The queen continued to stare at him, her colorless eyes darting between each of his purple ones. "Charming," said Jiero finally, releasing his hand and stepping in, "I'll assume that Sir Alpine will direct me to a room?" she asked, her voice sending chills down Haru's spine. He nodded, and gestured to the doors behind him. "I shall see you for supper then, Prince Haru."

Haru watched as she left, but the other three men around him had their eyes planted firmly in front of them. Slowly, the prince turned around to greet king Medigo, stopping short.

Though Alpine had explained to him the night before that Medigo was _not_ human, Haru hadn't quite believed him. Now, however, this truth became all too apparent; the man looming over him was the largest beast he had ever seen, complete with a mane and tail. His large teeth were gnashed at them all, but he didn't seem to be in bloodlust; just a very strange form of a smile.

"Ah," said Haru casually, smiling, "King Medigo. It's an honor to meet you."

Medigo's smile – if that strange toothy mouth could be considered a smile – widened. "You are much smaller than I had expected," he said in a rumbling voice, an accent thick on his tongue. Haru simply smiled, gesturing towards the doors of his castle. "It will be most…ah, _interesting_ to oversee your growth," growled the beast, moving away and heading to the castle, Lucia and Uta not far behind him.

Once the doors were closed, Haru turned to Musica, shaking. "Wow. You handled that a hell of a lot better than I did when I first met Medigo," the older one said, clapping him on the back. Haru stared at him blankly, his eyes wide. "Dude, chill. Medigo ain't gonna rip your throat out or anything."

The younger prince nodded slowly, feeling his head spin. "I think I need to sit down," he stammered out, clutching his head. Musica grabbed his elbows, gently leading him to the ground. "Alpine told me that he…wasn't human. But, God, did you see the _size_ of him? How does he fit in anywhere?"

Musica chuckled, patting his shoulder slightly. "Just relax. For now, worry about yourself, OK? You're all pale and stuff," he pointed out, grinning. Haru nodded numbly, still clutching his head.

"I told Elie. About me and Celia," said the prince after a while, leaning against the castle. "I dunno why. We were talking, and I just…wanted to tell her. She said that she'd heard Celia to be a 'very nice' person. It seemed like a good idea."

"Idiot," muttered Musica, sighing, "You're gonna regret that one, I think."

Haru looked up at him, calmed down now. "You think?" he asked, taking a deep breath. "I doubt it. Elie's just a friend, after all."

**XOX**

"Elie, may I ask you a question?"

Immediately, Elie looked away from the window she was staring from, blinking. "Yeah, what's up, Shuda?" she asked, smiling at him politely.

"Do you think it's wise? Being friends with Prince Haru, I mean," continued Shuda, gazing at the girl over his book seriously. Elie grinned, shrugging. "The thought of who he might _be_ has never crossed your mind, has it?"

The brunette shrugged slightly, turning back to the window. "Of course it has. But, I went into hiding to _prevent_ that from coming true. There's no way it'll come true now," she said confidently, leaning against her palm as she stared. Shuda sighed, but made no more remarks on it. "Hey…isn't that…?"

Before Shuda could ask, Elie had jumped from the chair and ran outside, leaving the door wide open. "Miss Elie!" cried the knight, standing up swiftly, "Miss Elie, it's past curfew!"

"Ooh, did you get lost, little guy?" cooed Elie rather than answer, appearing back in the house with a little dog in her arms. Shuda stared at her in disbelief, but she seemed completely unperturbed. "Shuda, this is Plue. He's Haru Plue Dog," she explained, holding the creature up for him to see. "The poor little guy must have gotten separated from Haru or something," she continued, stroking its' head softly. "Reminds me of my Plue Dog."

The creature made its' noise, spreading its' arms wide. "Elie," said Shuda slowly, staring at the creature with one eye wide, "Elie, I think that might just _be_ your Plue Dog."

Elie looked up in shock, her brown eyes wide. "Then why would he have gone to Haru, stabbed him in the thigh, but not draw any blood? My Plue Dog is still in Elie Village. You told me so when we got here," she said passively, going back to the little dog.

Before Shuda could reply, the little guy stuck its' nose through her arm. Predictably, Elie shrieked in pain, throwing the white creature away from her. Shuda was by her side in a heartbeat, examining the wound carefully. "Elie," he said slowly, pressing his hand against the area for a second and pulling away to show her his hand. The brunette stared down at it in wide-eyed shock, shaking her head slowly.

"Plue Dogs only ever belong to one person, though!"

Plue sat at her feet, waving his arms wildly to be picked up again. "A-and, I left Plue back in Elie Village. I couldn't take him with me, after all, considering that I was the only one that had one at the time!" she continued, shaking her head wildly.

Shuda sighed. "You think it's mere coincidence that Haru named him 'Plue', the same name that _you_ gave to this particular creature in its' _birth_? No, Elie, your Plue Dog and Haru Glory's Plue Dog are one in the same," he said, picking up the dog and holding him out for her. Tenderly, Elie took the dog, holding him against her chest and hugging him tightly.

"It doesn't matter anyways. Next time I see Haru, Plue will end up going back to him. He made the bond already," she said softly, sighing, "But, at least I know he's safe. And, if he's with Haru most of the time, then no one would dare to hurt him." The red head watched her seriously for a second before going back to the chair he had been sitting in and going back to his book. "Hey, Shuda? When is Sieg and Niebel coming back?"

"When the matters that Sieg Hart has to attend to are completed. It could be over already, or it could be another several years," said Shuda flatly, not even looking up from his book, "I know that he was like a brother to you, Elie, but be patient. He'll return. When, I cannot say, but he would never leave you behind without telling you first. You mean more to him than that."

Elie looked up curiously, resuming her previous seat, Plue in her lap sucking on a sucker that she had bought earlier that day. "I do?" she asked, her head tilting to the side slightly.

Shuda glanced up, smiling slightly. "Sieg Hart has known you since you were just a baby. He's not an affectionate person, but, yes. You mean a great a deal to him. More than I think even he realizes," he said, going back to his book.

The brunette looked out the window, her thoughts turning to Haru, and…Celia's engagement. "He's the only one, then," she muttered, too quiet for Shuda to hear, resting her arms on the windowsill and then her chin in her hands.

~x~

Author's Note: I really have just made Elie so horribly sad, haven't I? Well, she's rather sad in the actual manga, so…

Yes. Plue the Plue Dog belongs to both Elie _and_ Haru! Why? Because Plue originally belonged to Resha, and he found Haru later on, both in the manga and my story. As you can see, I'm trying to base off this story as much as I possibly can to the manga. Which isn't a lot, I might add…

Anyways, thank you for reading, and any/all feedback is always loved. (: I'll try to get the next chapter up a little faster, and it'll hopefully NOT be as much of a filler as this one was.


	14. Chapter 13: Just Days Away

Upside Down

~x~

Author's Note: This chapter is divvied up a lot. Switching between characters, I mean. Why? Because, there isn't really a set 'main character' in this chapter. Just about everyone is highly important, with their thoughts and secret conversations.

Before you start to read the actual story, be aware of one thing: There is a HUGE time-skip in this chapter. Why? Because I don't want the story to go over 24 chapters, and if I do it week by week, it'll pass that. I'm sorry if that annoys/bothers/upsets anyone, I really am. But, this chapter you get a lot of insight into Haru's classes, and how he's coming along with Celia and Elie! :D

Enjoy~

~x~

**Chapter Fourteen: Just Days Away**

"Elie! Elie, wake up!"

In response, the brunette simply groaned. In her almost-sleep, she was dimly aware that the person calling her name was not Sieg Hart, nor was it Shuda. This registered to the girl slowly, and when she could finally match the voice with a face, she had jumped out of bed and ran to the door, throwing it open. Standing in front of her, as she guessed, was Haru, looking more thrilled than she had ever seen him. "What's goin' on?" slurred the brunette sleepily, yawning.

Rather than answer, the prince grabbed her elbows and picked her up, twirling her around happily. "I've done it, Elie! I was training with Shiba today like I usually do, and I totally whooped his _ass_!" he cried, dropping her on her feet carefully and grabbing her shoulders tightly, positively glowing, "In five days, there's gonna be this huge ball and right before the ball, I'm gonna get _crowned_!"

The brunette cheered, throwing her arms around him. "Oh, Haru, that's so great!" she gushed, ignoring her racing heart as she hugged him. Haru laughed, his chest rumbling against hers.

"Anyways, I came to personally invite you and Sieg to the ball," he continued, pulling away from her and rubbing the back of his head. Rather than answer him, Elie swooped down and plucked Plue from the ground, hugging him tightly. "Er, well, if Sieg is in Symphonia, he's invited."

Elie grinned up at him. "Of course we'll be there! I mean, I hope so. We don't exactly have the best clothing for a ball, you know," she teased, stroking Plue's head softly. Haru shrugged, still glowing.

"I could always see if Belnika could get you both some clothes," offered the prince casually, leaning against the doorframe. Elie laughed, shaking her head. "Why not? You said you guys don't have the right clothing for stuff like this, right?" he asked, frowning at her. Elie shook her head again, shrugging.

Casually, she handed Plue back to him, feeling a pang in her heart as she did so. "I can't. Don't worry, Sieg and I will manage," she promised, grinning. The prince stared at her in confusion, not even noticing as his dog climbed up to his head. "Are you free for the day? Sieg and Niebel had to run some errands in the city, so I was just going to hang around the house all day."

Haru smirked at her, gesturing to her pajama's. "And by 'hang around', you really just mean you were gonna sleep all day," he teased, laughing as Elie's face flushed. "I'm just messing," he said, holding his hands up before she could attack him, "I'd love to hang around the house with you."

Nervously, Elie stepped aside and allowed him to enter, closing the door behind him. Though he was dressed casually, he seemed out of place in her little home. Much like how Sieg looked when Elie first saw him dressed as a poor man, Haru seemed to radiate that he belonged with the wealthy. It made her wonder if this is how Sieg and Shuda thought when they saw her.

"Nice place," commented Haru happily, sitting down at the table. Elie rolled her eyes, holding up a finger and disappearing into the small bedroom to change.

It seemed like only yesterday that Haru was running into her on the street, the brunette thought glumly. In the months that she had known him, Elie had chosen to ignore those subtle changes in her friend. The way that he was slowly smoothing out, the farmer in him gently being pushed aside as he learned the rules of royal etiquette, or how his scrawny, boyish features slowly hardened into muscles and the look of…well, Elie could only really describe it as looking more like a man.

The brunette sighed, pulling off her nightgown. The other subtle change she tried to deny was the way he seemed to glow whenever he mentioned his blushing bride to be. He had the glow that Elie most remembered from Sir Julius; it was the glow of love. Though she hadn't asked for any details about their engagement, or what they did together, Elie knew that they had to be doing _something_ together. They were, after all, engaged. It only made sense.

Silently, she pulled on the nearest dress and stared at her reflection in a dirty mirror Sieg had bought for her after she arrived. The first time she had looked into the smudged glass, Elie felt repulsed. 'This,' she had thought bitterly, 'is not who I am.' Now, when she looked into the mirror, she saw a poor girl from a poor family in the village of Symphonia.

Funny how her and Haru's life seemed to be inverted. She had been a princess turned peasant, and he had been peasant turned prince. Elie chuckled to herself, running a short brush through her hair and sighing; she missed how long it had been. Once she was done with making herself decent for the day, she left her tiny room, finding Haru and Plue right she had left them, at the table.

"It's a bit weird," she admitted, getting his attention, "seeing the soon to be King of Symphonia in my kitchen." Haru grinned widely, shrugging. "Hey, do you think I'd ever be able to go up to the castle? Not for a ball or something, just to, you know, hang out with you there."

It was predictable, but Elie couldn't help but feel a stab of rejection as Haru's face fell. "Considering who I've had as company," said the prince slowly, not meeting her gaze, "I don't think so. Not until Lucia, Uta, Jiero, Medigo, Haja, and Fumia leave." The brunette nodded calmly, sitting down by the windowsill and holding her arms open for Plue to jump into them. "But, right after they leave, you can definitely come up and see Musica and me!"

Elie smiled up at him. "And Celia," she added, feeling another pang of rejection as his face lit up again.

"And Celia, yeah," agreed Haru happily, sitting down in the only stuffed chair in the house – a chair that was usually reserved for Sieg, or Shuda. Elie stared at him, wishing beyond belief that she could just blurt out her secret to him, to tell him everything she had neglected to tell him in the months of their friendship.

She knew how badly he wanted to know. The brunette could see it in his eyes when she suddenly silenced during a story, remembering a detail that could ruin everything. He was trying so hard to know, to discover her secrets. But, Elie just couldn't do it. She didn't dare risk everything she had worked for. Not now, when she was only a month away from her sixteenth birthday.

**x**

The two sat in Elie's house talking for some time, not even noticing the passing of time. That was one of things that Haru loved most about Elie; she made an entire day seem like only a second of conversation. "Oh, guess what!" he said suddenly, remembering. She looked up, her eyes telling him to go on, "Julia and Let got back yesterday! The Civil War in Makai has apparently been resolved. At least, for now."

"That's –"

"Open the door!" screamed someone, pounding on the front door wildly. Elie and Haru jumped up in surprise, Plue falling to the floor. Elie looked horribly frightened, but after a second, Haru realized that he knew who their new guest was.

With a reassuring smile, he placed his hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry," he calmed, watching happily as her fear and worry slipped off her face, "I know who it is." Without another word, he walked to the door and threw it open, grinning at the person in the doorway.

As he expected, the woman was roughly his height, with long blonde hair and brown eyes that gave away her tough exterior. She was dressed in a simple white shirt and blue slacks, her creamy skin decorated with goose-bumps from the cold. "Good! Now, get out of the way – it's cold out here!" cried Queen Julia, pushing past Haru and into Elie's house. With a wide grin, Musica followed her, saluting his best friend.

"What the…? Oh. _Oh_," said Julia from the other room. Haru turned to see what she was staring at, and found her gaping at Elie. Musica leaned against the wall, watching the scene. "Haru," stuttered the queen, reaching for him but not taking her eyes off the confused brunette, "Haru, who is this?"

The prince smiled, going to Elie and wrapping an arm around her tiny shoulders. "This is one of my best friends. Her name is Elie," he introduced, grinning down at her. Plue 'puun'ed from the floor, and sat down on her feet. Nervously, Elie waved to Julia and grinned at Musica – on many occasions, Musica joined Haru in his trips to village, and Elie had grown quite attached to the silverclaimer.

Julia simply stared at her, her brown eyes narrowing and widening periodically. "I see. And," she said, finally finding her voice again, "where might you be from, Elie?"

"I was born in the northern part of Elie Village, Queen," replied the brunette, smiling slightly, "I lived there with my parents up until about six months ago, when my parents sent me to live with a close family friend in Symphonia."

The blonde smiled slowly, a curious expression on her face. "I see. And who might this close family friend be?" she asked, placing her hands on her hips. Haru turned to Musica, silently asking what Julia was doing. The other prince shrugged, clearly as confused as he was about the situation. This time, Elie hesitated in answering. She was watching Julia just as carefully as the queen was watching her, but confusion was obvious in her own expression.

Finally, she smiled again. "His name is Sieg Hart. He's a very incredibly Mage, and he's been teaching others that have magic potential. He has an adopted son, as well, named Niebel, who is currently away with him," she answered, picking up Plue from the ground, "But, that's not the only one I stay with. Occasionally, Sieg and Niebel have to go back to Elie Village for something, so another friend of the family – Sir Shuda – comes and stays with me."

Julia nodded, turning to Haru. "Let will be meeting us at the lake," she said briskly, grinning, "where the four – five, now – will be going ice skating. No choice about it," added the blonde happily as Haru opened his mouth to argue, "We haven't seen you for five and a half months. We _will_ go ice-skating."

Haru laughed, releasing Elie and sitting down at the table. "Sounds like a plan," he said cheerfully, grinning up at Elie, "Think you can stand being around _four_ people of royalty, Elie?" he teased. The brunette laughed, rolling her eyes casually.

"I think I'll be strong," replied Elie drastically, clutching Plue tightly. Haru laughed, feeling rather light. Julia grinned, grabbing her elbow and dragging her away. "J-Julia?"

The blonde rolled her eyes, stopping slightly. "We need something a bit warmer, don't you think?" she asked, making it sound obvious. Elie nodded in agreement, and pointed to a small door down the hallway, which Julia dragged her into.

Once the girls' were gone, Musica tossed Haru a heavy winter cloak, shrugging. "Let told me to bring it to you," he explained, sighing. Haru nodded gratefully, watching his friend carefully. Before he could ask, the prince looked up and sighed again. "In a couple days," he started to explain softly, his steely brown eyes never leaving Haru's purple ones, "it'll be the anniversary of the day my family was murdered."

Haru bowed his head in condolence. He understand that pain; he had recently spent both the anniversary of his mothers' death and his sisters' death in bed, skipping Alpine's class and Clea's class that week. "Do you have anything to remember them by?" asked the younger one softly, looking back up.

"Not really. I was thinking of doing things a little differently this year, though," replied Musica with a slight shrug, his cheeks going pink. Haru stared at his friend; when was Musica _ever_ embarrassed? "Well, my family, as I told you, were the best alchemists and weapon makers in the entire world. The only reason they were killed is because the idiot that they made a sword for once went insane and slaughtered them," Musica had spoken calmly, but his hands were clenched into tight fists, giving him away, "Anyways, I was thinking that maybe I could…try my hand at it. Making a sword, I mean. But, I never really had any incentive to try it out. Until…now."

The two stared at each other for a second, Haru simply not understanding what his friend was trying to tell him. "You have a reason to make a sword?" he parroted, tilting his head to the side. Musica sighed in exasperation, covering his eyes with his hand.

"Yeah, I do. I mean, considering my best friend just surpassed the freakin' _Sword Saint_ today, and will be getting crowned in a couple days," he said sarcastically, glaring at the prince, "I dunno. Does that seem like a good reason to you or not?" Haru simply stared at him for a little while, his mind slowly processing what was being said.

Suddenly, he jumped up, knocking Plue off his head again. "You're gonna make me a sword?" he asked, gaping at his friend.

Musica rolled his eyes. "Dude, don't get so excited. I'm a silverclaimer, not a sword-maker. It probably won't be as good as Shiba's Eisenmeteor, but it'll be your own sword, you know?" he asked, unable to force away his smile.

"I don't care if it's better than Eisenmeteor or not! Dude, you're gonna make me a _sword_!" cried Haru, shaking his head in disbelief. Musica smirked, shrugging slightly, watching as his friend beamed up at him. "Anyways, what are taking Julia and Elie so long?" he asked, staring down the hall where they had disappeared.

The older one laughed. "Girls always take forever. Like, it's in their DNA or somethin'." Just as Haru was beginning to laugh, he watched as his friend fell forward, his eyes wide. Behind him stood Julia, her hand in a tight fist, glaring down at him.

"You got anything else to say about my DNA, you little punk?" demanded the queen shortly, placing her hands on her hips. Next to her, Elie giggled slightly, holding what looked like two thick woolen cloaks draped over her thin arms. "Hey, Elie, how come it's so warm in here, but there isn't any fire?" Julia asked suddenly, placing her foot on Musica's head to keep him from getting back up and attacking her.

At that, the brunette grinned widely. "Sieg Hart did something so that it's always comfortable to whoever is in the house," she answered proudly, beaming at the blonde.

Just as Musica was about to get up and attack Julia for punching him, Haru jumped up, hands in the air. "You guys can fight when we're on the ice," he said tiredly, smiling at everyone, "for now, let's just focus on _getting_ to the lake." Julia rolled her eyes, but slowly pulled her foot off of Musica's head, grabbed the top cloak from Elie's arms, and walked off. Musica, rubbing his head, stood up as well, glaring at the queen's back as he followed her out. Elie stayed where she was, watching the two in a mixture of amusement and confusion.

"Are you sure that you guys want me to come along?" asked the brunette softly, not meeting Haru's gaze. "I mean, wouldn't it make more sense to bring Princess Celia along?" Haru stared at her, seeing that deep sadness in her eyes once again.

The past several months, when Haru had seen that sadness lingering in her brown spheres, it seemed to bring along a twinge of pain for him, somewhere deep in his chest. He wanted her to be happy, to always be smiling and acting silly with him. "Nah. Celia is with her sister," he comforted, wrapping an arm around her shoulder gently, "Besides, Julia seems to like you. I know she's a little bold, but trust me. She makes it known when she doesn't care for you."

Plue nodded at her eagerly from the floor, but rather than smile down at him like she usually would have, Elie looked up at him, disbelief coloring her eyes for a little bit. "Yeah, I guess you're right," agreed the girl suddenly, the sadness disappearing from her eyes as she grinned up at him. Haru grinned down, and the two left, closing the door to her little house behind them and ran off to catch up with Julia and Musica.

**x**

"You seriously didn't notice it?" asked Julia seriously, glancing over her shoulder to check if Haru and Elie were coming. Musica simply stared at her, his jaw slightly open. "Dude, close your mouth! Haru obviously doesn't know, and we wouldn't want him finding out," she snapped, lifting up his jaw forcefully.

Musica's mouth snapped close, and he gazed backwards at Elie, his eyes narrowing. "Did she _tell_ you this?" he asked finally, sounding far too skeptical for Julia's pleasure. She shook her head slowly, sighing. "Then how can you just assume that's who she is?"

The queen wanted to tackle him; she knew that she was right, he was just missing the facts. "Resha's been missing for seven months, right? Well, Elie's been here for six months, approximately. It takes exactly one month to get from Elie Village to Symphonia by foot. Judging by some of the clothes I saw in Elie's room, she definitely didn't get here by carriage, Musica," she explained, her eyes shooting daggers at him.

"Listen, there's no way that Elie is Resha. She's a bit different than most peasants around these parts, but you can't just automatically rank up with a princess," retorted Musica, sighing. "How about this?" he added carefully, interrupting her quietly, "We just watch her today. We don't have much to base it off, considering neither of us have ever actually seen Resha Valentine, but we'll watch her. You an' Let have been around royalty your entire lives, so you know how they act."

Before anything more could be said, Elie and Haru caught up, their cheeks rosy from running so far, Plue lazily atop Haru's head. "You guys didn't hear us calling?" asked Haru breathlessly, pouting at them both. Elie didn't say anything, too busy with trying to catch her breath again.

Actually, both of them had heard their calls, but had chosen to ignore it. "Nope," they said together, exchanging a look. The younger two exchanged a look of their, shrugging casually.

As they walked, Julia watched Elie very carefully. She had the same walk as the next person, but there was a way that she held her back sometimes that suddenly showed a flash of something else. Her brown eyes swept the area she was walking in, making sure not to step in anything – something only the higher up did. Peasant didn't care much for getting shit on their shoes; the higher up did, however. By the time they had reached the lake, Julia was even surer that her assumption was correct; she just needed to prove it.

**x**

Before even saying 'hello' to the other person at the lake waiting for them, Haru and Musica grabbed a pair of ice-skates and pulled them on, racing to see who could get on the ice the fastest. As Elie was grabbing a pair for herself – King Let had been kind enough to bring a large amount of them, to make sure everyone got a good pair – the two princes shakily made their way to the iced over lake, stepping on and taking off. "Who woulda thought that kid could ice-skate?" asked Julia calmly to her husband, smiling at him. Plue 'puun'ed from the ground, running out to follow them, slipping as soon as he touched the ice.

"It would appear that his lessons have certainly paid off," replied the king softly, his eyes landing on Elie. "You must be Haru's friend, Elie. It's a pleasure to meet you," he said kindly. Elie smiled, standing up shakily and curtsying slightly – a lot harder than she thought it would be in skates.

"The pleasure is all mine, King," she replied just as kindly, smiling, "Haru has told me a great deal about you and your wife."

Julia rolled her eyes, jumping on the ice without her skates and going after Haru. "What the hell have you been saying about me, you brat!" she screamed, catching Haru off-guard as she punched his stomach. Predictably, the prince went flying, landing hard on the ice in confusion. Elie couldn't help but laugh as the scene unfolded, holding her stomach and trying to keep her balance.

Even Let cracked a smile. "He'll make a king better than any other this country has yet seen," muttered the blonde softly, crossing his arms against his chest. Elie nodded happily, beginning to head towards the ice, "Every great king requires a great queen, you know. I do not believe that the queen he desires is up to it."

Immediately, Elie froze. Slowly, she turned back to him, but he was no longer watching her. "You don't think Princess Celia is a good match for Haru?" she asked curiously, steadying herself. Let shook his head slightly, watching as his wife began to chase Musica.

"I believe that Prince Haru jumped headfirst into a marriage he did not truly want. He shall regret it in the end, as did King Gale."

The brunette shivered, running towards the lake without answering him. His words rung a truth so deep in her mind, but it wasn't a truth she wanted to hear. Haru loved Celia. If he didn't when they got engaged, he sure did now. In the end, that's all that would really matter to him. As she passed him, the brunette scooped up Plue into her arms, allowing the dog to climb onto her back and grab onto her cloak. "Haru!" cried Elie happily, skating over to where he was. He grinned widely, holding out his hand for her to grab.

With a wide grin, she took it, and the two went off, skating around hand-in-hand. Through her thin gloves, Elie felt the heat from his hand spread up her arm and to her chest, leaving her feeling very, very warm despite the cold.

**x**

Silently, the three others watched as their friends ice-skated together, exchanging a look every now and then. "So, what do you think?" asked Julia finally, unable to take the wait any longer, "She's definitely Resha, huh?"

Musica scoffed silently, rolling his eyes at her and rushing over to join the other two. Let stayed quiet, only adding to his wife's anticipation. "She may not be Resha," he finally said slowly, "but she is by no means a mere peasant. Just as his wife was about to argue, he held a hand up, silencing her. "See the way she skates? Few peasants can afford skating gear, correct? So, how is it that she can skate better than Haru and Musica? Natural talent, perhaps? No," said the king, finally turning to her, "No, she has the talent of someone who's grown up in an area that is colder than here, and who has been skating her entire life."

"Or dancing," added Julia softly, ignoring the look that Let was giving her. "Listen, the only difference to ice-skating and dancing is that one is done on ice with skates, and one isn't. Resha Valentine was famous for her dancing talent, right? Well,_ look_ at Elie!" she nearly cried, gesturing towards the girl, "She's Resha. I just know it, Let. When have I ever been wrong?"

Let sighed, turning to his wife fully and placing his hands on her shoulders. "I believe you. Julia, of course I believe you," he said softly, a smile threatening to break through his indifferent façade, "But we have no more proof than saying this lake was once the home of mermaids. I know that it will be neither fun nor easy, but we must hold our tongue."

The queen sighed, looking down at her hands. "Hey, Julia! Let!" screamed Haru loudly, interrupting whatever Julia was about to say, "Come on! You're the ones that dragged me an' Elie out here!" The two blondes looked up, and, in unison, jumped onto the lake, heading right for Haru.

Immediately, the younger one took off, skating for his life. "Get back here, you little snot!" cried Julia loudly, just feet behind him. He laughed loudly, sticking his tongue out at them both as he turned sharply. Rather than pulling off a sweet looking turn, however, the prince found himself sliding on the ice by his side, eyes closed in pain. Seizing the opportunity, Julia tackled him, sending them both flying. Before he could even react, she was sitting on his waist, pinning him to the slippery ice. "You got anything else to say, kid?"

Laughing, Haru shook his head. "You know," he said, smirking, "I'm not the same little kid that I was when you met me." That said, the prince pushed her off, rolling over so he was the one pinning her down.

"You…!" cried Julia, her anger fading into awe. This was _not_ the same kid she had said goodbye to all those months ago. He was stronger, more refined even. "Nice. I'm impressed, Haru," she said softly, smiling up at him. Haru grinned back, getting off of her and offering her a hand up. "Six months and you're already more like a prince than Musica's ever been."

The silverclaimer called out some profanity at her, but Julia ignored it, too busy staring down at Haru. There were the obvious age changes, but there seemed to be a new way his body was muscled. It took her a little bit, but Julia slowly realized that it was because he actually _had_ muscles. Not as much as Let, but enough to intimidate anyone looking for a fight. "Six months," said Haru softly, smiling, "might have changed a few things. But, I'm still Haru."

Julia smirked, whacking the back of his head. "You better hope so," she told him just as soft, turning around and joining the other three - four, counting the strange creature.

**x**

For the next few hours, the five of them messed around on the ice, occasionally getting off and throwing snow at one another. It was, by a great majority, more fun than Elie had ever had, both when she was in Elie Village and after. "Hey, I think I see someone coming," said Musica suddenly. The five were sitting around what would have been the bank of the lake, a small fire in the middle of them.

Everyone looked up, eye's squinting to see better. "Looks like a young girl," commented Haru softly, turning to Elie, "Maybe a little bit younger than you." Elie didn't reply, too stunned to speak. "Elie?"

"Nagisa!" cried the brunette suddenly, jumping up and running over to the figure, throwing Plue away from her in the process. The figure paused for a second before running forward as well, meeting the girl halfway in a big bear hug. The two were close enough for them all to see a bit clearer, but Elie paid no heed to whether she could be seen or heard decently. "What are you doing here? I thought you and Yuma and everyone else was staying in Elie Village to sort everything out?" she asked excitedly, all smiles.

Nagisa smiled, shrugging. Elie looked her over, completely amazed at what she saw. The girls' pink hair had grown down to her elbows, braided into two thick pigtails. Her skin was as tanned as ever, despite it being close to the New Year. "Shuda mentioned that you might need a few things from Elie Village," she said carefully, her blue eyes flashing to the group behind Elie for a second, "So Julius and I came to deliver them to you. They're back at your house, and I came to find her since Sieg said you were out with some friends."

The brunette laughed – Sieg knew everything. "Julius is here too?" she asked happily, grinning even wider. "How come he didn't come to find me too?"

"He had to discuss something with Sieg," said the younger girl shortly, placing her hands on her hips, "I hate to tear you away from your new friends, Elie, but we should get going as well. There is much Julius and I need to discuss with you as well." Elie sighed, but nodded.

With her finger held up, she turned around and rushed back to her friends, wrapping her cloak around her thin body tighter. "I'm really sorry to just leave you guys," she said seriously, "but, my two friends Nagisa and Julius are here with some things I kind of forgot back at my parents' house. I haven't seen them in seven months, so…"

Always the optimist, Haru simply waved away her explanation. "Fine by us. Have fun with your friends," he said cheerfully. Plue gave his noise in agreement, waving at her happily from where she had thrown him. Elie grinned at them gratefully, saying a quick goodbye to the other three before turning back around and running to Nagisa once more.

"Shuda and Sieg did not lie when they said you've decided to associate yourself with royalty," said the younger girl softly. Elie shrugged, and the girl sighed. "You are as trusting as always, I see."

The brunette grinned. "Haru and I have been best friends since I got here," she explained, "When he was just realizing his heritage. I just met Let and Julia today, but Musica comes down with Haru every so often." Nagisa sighed again, leading the way back to her house. "Sieg won't tell me anything about what's going on in Elie Village," said the brunette once they reached the village, "And Shuda's the same way. You and Julius will be the first news I've heard at all in the past seven months."

The younger one didn't reply. "Neither one wanted you to worry," Nagisa finally said, stopping at the door of her house. "You aren't going to like what we have to tell you. Are you sure that you want to hear it?"

Elie stared at her so intensely, words were not needed. "Nagisa," she said regardless, sighing, "this is my country, my people, and my _life_ we're talking about. I don't care how bad the news is. _Of course_ I want to hear. No, I _need_ to hear this, Nagisa."

~x~

Author's Note: Bahahaha, cliff-hanger! x3 That's me showing my love to you all – I take forever and a day to update, and then hand you a nice, happy little cliff-hanger. Mwuhaha.  
Expect a big chapter next time, though. Looooooots of stuff planned~


	15. Chapter 14: Resha Valentine

Upside Down

~x~

Author's Note: First things first; this chapter will not contain Haru. Instead, this entire chapter is for Elie. It will focus primarily on Elie, Resha, and Elie Village.

Enjoy~

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**Chapter Fourteen: Resha Valentine  
**

Quickly, Nagisa and Elie made their way through the village, nodding and wishing those that they passed a merry Christmas. "Christmas wouldn't be the same without you guys here," said Elie softly as her house came into sight. Nagisa didn't answer, her eyes darting every which way, securing the area.

"Christmas wouldn't be the same without you either, Elie," she finally replied, offering her a rare smile. Elie smiled back, holding the door open for her friend. Nagisa stopped, staring at her openly. "I'm not sure if I should feel honored or disgraced," she said softly, slipping into the house quickly with Elie on her heels. Immediately, the brunette looked around the room, searching for Julius.

He wasn't hard to spot – his flamboyant white cloak and bright yellow outfit stuck out like a sore thumb in their little house. As it was the last time she saw him, Julius's hair was long and shining beautifully. "Julius!" she cried, grinning widely.

Immediately, the man stood up dramatically, beaming down at her. "Oh, my princess, you are as beautiful as ever!" he replied, bowing deeply. Elie giggled, waving him back up. "I will admit, however, that your beauty has been knocked down by this peasant appearance of yours. Do you not wish for your previous beauty as the people of the world wish the beauty of Sir Julius?"

Before Elie could reply, Sieg placed a hand on Elie's shoulder. "I would assume that beauty is the least of Elie's worries," he said flatly. Elie grinned up at him, and he smiled back down. "You have come here for two reasons, have you not?" The brunette suspected that he already knew the reasons – not much escaped Sieg – but he was just asking for her benefit.

The two knights exchanged a look. "Yes. One is to inform Elie all that you and Shuda have refused to tell her, and the other is to –"

"Prepare her for the crowning of Prince Haru!" interrupted Julius in a sing-song voice, placing one hand over his chest and the other in the air. "We suspected that Elie has no such outfit for an occasion as beautiful as this, so we graciously stole a dress from the abandoned closet of Resha Valentine and brought the one she thought would suit her best! Absolutely beautiful!" Elie and Sieg stared at the man, their mouths slightly open in their shock.

At the same time Elie squealed in delight, Sieg groaned. "Hold it, Elie," said the older man, stopping her from running and embracing Julius. "Julius, do you _want_ the world to know where Resha is? If you were going to bring Elie a dress for the ball, the least you could have done was buy an all new one!"

Elie rolled her eyes, crossing her arms against her chest. "Sieg, relax. No royalty has ever even seen Resha Valentine," she reminded him with a slight pout, "Besides, I needed a dress for the ball anyways, and Julius and Nagisa didn't know my sizes or anything. It was just easier for them to bring me one of the ones I already have. Er, had." Sieg sighed, rubbing his eyes. "But, that can wait. I'm more interested in hearing about Elie Village. How has everyone fared since King Valentine's death?"

This time, everyone else in the room looked away. Elie felt her heart drop, but she patiently awaited their answers. "Yuma and Hardner have been carefully guarding Resha's throne," said Nagisa finally, sighing deeply, "While Julius and myself have been attempting to keep the peace in the city. The people, they've lost it. Riots, boycotts, everything possible to try and overthrow the government happen more often than not now. The people are afraid, Elie, that another country will try and overthrow us, so they've taken it upon themselves to 'protect' everyone else."

"Which, naturally, means they're trying to overthrow the government first," added Julius somberly, slipping into one of his very rare serious moods, "My intelligence has uncovered a group of people called The Blue Guardians that's been meeting in secret, discussing how to overthrow it. They have a leader, a man whose identity is impossible to trace, and the information he has been giving them has led us to believe that he's high up in our government."

"However," cut in Nagisa, "like Julius said, he's impossible to identify. The Blue Guardians appear to be planning with someone _else_, from another country, in order to successfully take over Elie Village. What this is other country is, however, still remains a mystery. We have our men working on uncovering it, but we've had no such luck."

"And while the Blue Guardians are meeting in secret," said Sieg softly, not meeting Elie's eyes, "their lowest ranks wreak havoc. Violent protests to the government, burning down buildings, stealing from the shops, and once, even going so far as to commit a murder. The guards have, seemingly, decided to join them as well – they rarely listen to those in command, and will turn a blind eye when shown a crime of sorts."

Julius sighed, flipping his hair. "To be short," he said softly, "it's becoming chaos. The world is already in enough turmoil as it is; it is our fear that one of the more power-hungry nations will attempt to overtake us themselves, in a cruel way to bait you out of hiding. King Lucia has already presented his, ah, desire for you, has he not? We believe that he may have had something to do with the Blue Guardians, but we have no proof."

"As I'm sure you know without having to be told, those that know of your whereabouts – Yuma, Shuda, Sieg, Julius, and myself – are trying to maintain what little peace remains. However," Nagisa cut in, "I'm sure you can imagine how difficult this is. The people do not want us in the castle, Elie. They want the Valentine family. More specifically, they want their princess back."

Elie, who had remained completely silent and indifferent throughout the entire conversation, looked down at her hands, biting her lower lip. Sieg placed his hands on her arms gently, leading her to a seat and setting her down before she fainted. The brunette didn't acknowledge him, too lost in thought to fully process what had happened.

That must be why Sieg and Shuda kept it such a secret, she realized dully. After the death of her father, Elie had come so close to returning, they did not want to sway her decision any more. "My promise will be fulfilled soon," she finally said, looking up at each of them in turn, "And once it has been, I shall return. My sixteenth birthday is approaching, and no such prophecy has come true. Hiding is no longer a necessity."

Sieg knelt down next to her, placing a hand on her knee carefully. "Elie, is this what you want?" he asked gently, his violet eyes staring directly into her brown ones, "In the past six months you've been here, you ceased to be hiding from some possible outcome of your power. You've created a life here, with Prince Haru, and Prince Musica, several of the maids from the castle, and even the bartender. You've already walked away from one life. Do you want to do the same thing?"

The brunette shook her head slightly, tears forming in her eyes. "Of course I don't want to leave Haru and Musica and Belnika and Gemma!" she said shakily, looking down at her lap, "But, my people _need_ me, Sieg. They've needed me since the day my father died. And, what have I been doing? Hiding away in a country that takes almost a month to travel to!"

"Calm down, Elie," soothed Nagisa worriedly, kneeling next to Sieg. "Julius and I are going to be here until after the New Year. If you still want to return when the two of us go back, we'd be more than happy to take you along." Elie nodded shakily, wiping her eyes and nose with the back of her hand. "Everything will go back to normal, Elie, I promise. No one would dare to attack you, not with the knowledge of Etherion."

Elie hiccupped slightly, turning her gaze to Sieg meaningfully. "True, but I don't know how to control Etherion. I don't even know how to summon forth any of it to use!" she said, sighing. Sieg didn't look the least bit perturbed by her outburst, waiting calmly for her to look away before speaking again.

"I suppose you better prepare how you intend to tell your new friends that you'll be leaving," he said shortly, standing up again. "But, for now? I think it's time for you to get some rest. You've had a long day." Elie nodded, standing up and sighing.

"I apologize for cutting this short," she said formally to her guests, "but, I believe that it's time for bed." Julius and Nagisa waved away her apology, wishing her a goodnight as she left the room and climbed into the room she shared with Niebel.

As expected, he was still awake. "You weren't home when Sieg and I got back," he stated in the dark. Elie didn't reply, as she was too busy slipping off her dress and into her pajama's carefully. "Sieg was really worried."

The brunette sighed, carefully sliding into her bed. "I doubt that," she finally told him, rolling over to face him. Though she couldn't really see him – nor could he see her – they could see each other's shape. "Niebel, do you think I should go back to Elie Village? Nagisa and Julius said that, if I wanted to, I could come with them when they left."

"Definitely not!" cried Niebel softly, his form shifting so he was sitting up. Elie's eyes widened, and she propped herself onto her elbow, watching him carefully. "You have all these friends and stuff here, don't you? Why would you leave them behind?"

Elie sighed, laying on her back and staring up at the ceiling. "But, what if I'm needed there? What if the entire country needs me, right now? I have a duty to my country," she explained softly, one hand covering her eyes. In the dark, the brunette heard Niebel sigh and slowly get out of bed, his light footsteps almost going unheard. Before she could ask, the little boy climbed into bed with her, snuggling close to her the way he did when he had a nightmare. Elie smiled slightly, wrapping her arms around the younger boy and holding him close.

For a few minutes, the two remained like that in silence. "Symphonia is your country now, Elie," said the boy softly, catching Elie just before she fell asleep. "You belong here. I'm sure that others would agree."

Elie didn't reply, and instead feigned sleep. Niebel, despite his young age, was incredibly wise. He was every bit as wise as Sieg was, she suspected. In her silence, the young boy slowly fell asleep, moving away from her slightly to roll onto his back, his mouth slightly open. Elie smiled down at him lovingly; in the past months she had spent with him, Niebel had become a great deal like a younger brother to her.

Once she was certain everyone else in the house was asleep, the brunette slipped carefully out of bed, not even stirring Niebel as she did so. Without even bothering to change out of her sleeping clothes, choosing instead to leave the house silently, grabbing only her thicker cloak for warmth.

Quickly, she made her way back to the lake she had spent the day. As she guessed, it was empty with only the ashen remains of the fire they had started as evidence that people had been there at all. Elie stared at it for a while, hugging her cloak around her tightly to block out the slight breeze. With a slight sigh, the brunette made her way over to where Haru and Plue had been sitting, their footprints still evident on the white ground.

Elie sat down, staring at the black ash in front of her, too lost in thought to hear the approaching person. "Kinda late, don't ya' think?" called the person, startling the brunette to the point of jumping to her feet. The person was almost invisible in the dark, only her hair was recognizable; long, and pale blonde.

"Q-Queen Julia!" cried Elie in surprise, placing a hand over her racing heart. "You…scared me. What are you doing in the village at this time of night?" she asked softly, squinting in the dark to see if that would help her visibility.

Julia didn't answer, merely stepping closer to the younger girl. "That's not the right question," she finally said, gazing down at the girl intensely, "A much better one would be what are _you_ doing in a village in the dead of night?" she continued, the moon breaking through the clouds and revealing her face. Elie shivered, though it had nothing to do with the cold breezes.

"I live in this village," said Elie softly, shrinking inside her cloak. Julia's eyes narrowed slightly, as if she didn't believe her. "My friends brought bad news with them," she added carefully, "so I came out here to think."

"In the cold?"

The brunette had to admit, it was a pretty dumb idea. However, she simply smiled. "I like the cold. Elie Village is a lot colder in the winters than it is here, so this really isn't anything to what I'm used to," Elie replied with a wide grin. "I was hoping that it would snow, but I guess the clouds are going away, so I'll have to wait until next time."

Again, Julia didn't answer, which only added to Elie's discomfort. "What are you really doing here, Elie?" she asked finally, her gaze softening. "You're a peasant, orphaned, if I recall correctly, living with a family friend and his adopted son some of the time, and a knight the others. You recently had two visitors that I happen to know, for a fact, are vassals for the Valentine family. Now, how could a peasant be family friends with someone that important?"

Elie shrunk deeper inside her cloak, flinching slightly. "My parents were…teachers. Highly respected teachers. They became friends with Nagisa and Julius and Sieg and Shuda before they all became vassals and knights," replied the brunette carefully. It wasn't entirely a lie, either; all of whom she had mentioned had been close friends of her parents before they were knighted and such.

"If Sieg is so important in Elie Village, why is a peasant?" demanded Julia, her eyes narrowing again. Elie's eyes widened, and as Julia began walking closer, the brunette began to step back. "Regardless of what you might have told Haru, knights and teachers do not befriend one another."

"I –"

"But, he isn't just a teacher, is he?"

"No –"

"Nagisa and Julius aren't just here for a social visit, right?"

"Uh –"

"I'm going to ask you _one more time_ Elie. Why are you really here?"

By now, Julia was towering over Elie, close enough for the younger girl to feel the heat from her body on her. The brunette held up her hands in defeat, shaking her head in both an attempt to clear it, and gain some time to think. "I know that it sounds…strange, my situation. But, really, I haven't lied about any of it. Sieg, Shuda, Julius, and Nagisa _were_ friends of my parents before their passing. Sieg gave up his status and title to take care of me, that's why we're living as peasant's," she explained, smiling nervously.

The blonde stared down at her so intensely, the disbelief was almost radiating off of her. "That's another thing," said Julia finally, her eyes narrowing even more, "I don't care if your parents were teachers to Lady Resha. No peasant talks the way you do." Elie felt whatever coloring she had left in her face drain away. Desperately, she opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out. "You know, you can fool Haru and Musica all you want," continued Julia confidently, "But, that's only because those two have spent the greater part of their life around peasants. And yet, at the same time, they've spent time around royalty. Their ability to distinguish royalty from commoner has blurred to the point of not existing anymore.

"But guess what, Elie? I have spent my entire life around royalty. I can determine when someone was born into poverty or when they born in a shining golden castle. Regardless of what you dress yourself in, or what country you live in, there's no hiding who you really are. Not from me," finished Julia, placing her hands on her hips.

For a few seconds, Elie simply gaped at her. This woman had only met her _once_. One time. But there was no denying that she had figured it out. The brunette was trapped in a corner. "What…what do you want from me?" she asked softly, hating the defeated tone that had come with it.

Julia's eyes widened slightly. "What do you mean? I don't _want_ anything except for some answers," she told her, stepping back slightly to give her some room.

The brunette hung her head, feeling tears welling up in her eyes. All those months of hiding, and it had gone to waste. "I can't…I mean, I'm not allowed to answer any question you have," said Elie weakly, shaking her head slightly and looking back up at her, "If I do, it'll put us both in danger, and I can't do that."

"Take a look around us, Elie," pointed out Julia blandly, "Who do you think will overhear us? The lake?"

Elie shook her head again, tears beginning to fall. "I can't, Julia. It's too risky," she said again, trying to move around her. The blonde, however, did not appear to be having that; she grabbed her arm tightly, halting her.

"You can trust me. I have no interest or intention to take control of Elie Village, nor do I have the incentive to try and use you to get something I don't already have."

The brunette sobbed slightly, hanging her head. Quietly, Julia pulled her into a hug, rubbing her back lightly. For a few seconds, they stayed like that, the only noises coming from Elie. Finally, Julia pulled away, holding the girl at arms' length and staring into her eyes. "I know this must be hard for you, Elie," she said softly, "but, will you answer my questions?"

Elie hiccupped slightly, nodding. "I…I couldn't. I couldn't stay in Elie Village. Not after…not after Lucia came to…came to see me," she gasped out, her voice shaking horribly. Julia didn't reply except to gently guide her to where the five had been sitting earlier, one arm around her shoulders comfortingly.

"Why couldn't you stay?" asked Julia softly, sounding more concerned for her than curious. Elie sighed deeply, trying to regain a bit of control of herself.

The brunette took another deep breath, closing her eyes. "Because if I hadn't left, Lucia would have taken me away regardless. He would have used Etherion for evil, and I wouldn't even be able to stop him by controlling it myself."

As Julia was about to ask, Elie shook her head. "I'll talk," she said softly, "if you listen."

**FLASHBACK**

"_Lady Resha? You have a visitor," called a man from the other side of the door. Resha scowled, leaning her head back against the edge of the tub peacefully._

_"Tell em' I'm busy and to come back later," she replied airily. Next to her, a shriveled up Plue Dog 'puuned!' in agreement, hanging over the little tube that was keeping him afloat._

_The person sighed. "Milady, it is King Lucia from Raregroove," he replied wryly, sounding exasperated. Resha opened her eyes and turned to the dog, moving to the other edge of the tub and pressing her body against it carefully. "I cannot simply tell him to come back later."_

_Resha sighed, flipping some of her long, wet hair back into the tub. "Then entertain him, Sir Sieg," she said simply, grinning, "Plue and I are in the bath. Whatever he has to say or whatever he wants can wait." That said, she sat back in the tub resolutely, beginning to massaging soap onto her long strands._

_From the other side of the door, Sieg sighed again. "Please hurry, Lady Resha. The young King is not patient," he said urgently, his footsteps heard as he walked back down the hallway. Resha rolled her eyes again, grabbing a small pail and dipping it into the water._

_"Lucia can wait," muttered the princess again, moving to the center of the tub and gently pouring the water onto her head, repeating the process until her long hair was free of soap, shining gracefully. "What do you think, Plue-chan? Should we meet with him?" she asked, crossing her arms against her chest._

_Plue considered for a second. "Puun!" he cried, shaking his head. Resha laughed cheerfully, picking him up and placing him out of the tub anyways, grabbing her towel and stepping out herself._

_"Yeah, but Dad will be really upset if we deny him," pointed out Resha glumly, pouting slightly as she dried herself off. Usually, she would have had maids in here doing everything for her, but Resha had told them that the bath was a private time, and that she was fifteen now – old enough to bathe herself. Quickly, she pulled on a simple white dress, tying it around her middle with an orange sash. "Ready, Plue-chan?" she asked, picking him up carefully. He didn't reply – already asleep._

_Once she left the bathing room, Resha handed the little dog to a passing maid. "Can you please bring Plue back up to my room? He's asleep," she explained sweetly, smiling at the lady. She nodded, curtsied, and took off with the little dog. Resha stood in the corridor for a moment longer, watching as her loyal dog was slowly carried off, sighing._

_Before the lady turned the corner, the brunette took off, not entirely sure where she was supposed to be going. "Princess!" cried someone from behind her. Immediately, she flipped around, finding herself face to face with Sieg Hart. "There you are. I assumed you would still be in the bath," he explained, smiling down at her slightly. Resha grinned widely up at him, shrugging. "May I escort you?" he continued, holding out his arm for her to take._

_"Must you ask?" replied the princess warily, taking his arm gently and allowing herself to be led. "You know, you really don't have to be so formal with me, Sieg. After all, you've known me since I was a baby!"_

_Sieg smiled slightly, his violet eyes flashing down at her. "But I do, Milady. I am but a humble servant to the Valentine family," he said grandly, chuckling slightly at her pout._

_The brunette placed her other hand on her hip, pouting to the space in front of her. "You are _not_ a servant, Sieg! You're the best sorcerer in the entire world! Even better than I'll ever be," she argued, sighing as the two stopped in front of two double doors. "Do I have to meet with him? Dad doesn't want me meeting the other royalties."_

_"Yes, you have to. You're fifteen now. The time to hide away is over, Lady," he said, releasing her arm and turning away. "I shall be just out here. Tell the young king that I shall not hesitate to come in and rescue you, if need be." Resha giggled, wiggling her fingers at him as she pushed the doors open and entered._

_As expected, the king was in the center of the room, standing with his arms behind his back as he waited. Though he wore no crown – no one in royalty really wore their crown unless the occasion called for it – he was dressed in clothes finer than any other Resha had seen. The shirt looked to be made of satin, colored of the darkest green. His trousers were of the same material, only pitch black. A golden chocker was strung across his neck, several glittering emeralds visible, as well as a small sword with a purple hilt reaching down to the V-shape of his shirt. Around his shoulders was a cape the color of his trousers on the inside, but deep green on the outside. His long blonde hair hung around his face gracefully, framing his thin, tanned face and rather narrow gold colored eyes._

_"Ah, Lady Resha," said the king grandly, bowing deeply as she approached. "It truly is a great honor to meet you." The brunette smiled sweetly at him, waving him back up to his full height as she curtsied._

_"The honor is all mine, King Lucia. To receive a personal visit from one such as yourself is truly remarkable," she said softly, the lessons she had learned finally going to use. The man's face broke into a cocky looking smirk, but he did not say anything more. "I'm sure you've heard that visitors are…rare. To say the least," she continued, smiling at him widely._

_Lucia chuckled slightly, and the noise sent shivers down the brunette's back. "I have heard many about you, Princess. Most of which being rumors by the ignorant, and few proven. However," he said briskly before she could reply, "I did not come to speak of the ignorant or the wise. No, I came with a much greater subject."_

_The brunette wanted to run from the room at his tone, but she kept her smile on her face. "But, of course," said Resha grandly, gesturing for him to continue._

_"As I'm sure you've heard, I've recently come into my heritage rather…prematurely, I might add. In these past months that I have been king, I've found one thing – it is a rather dull life. So lonely, and…alone," he said, gently picking up a strand of her hair and twirling it around his finger, "After many a nights' worth of thought, I believe I've found a counter to such loneliness. Marriage. What better way to feel as if you have someone there than binding your hands together till death do they part, I reasoned. However, that was just the beginning. Picking a suitable bride proved to be much more laborious, I soon found._

_"Now, I wanted to find a wife that is, preferably, younger than I, or the same age. That did not leave me many options, as I've already determined that I will only marry those with the purest blood. In fact," he added, smirking widely, "that left me with two choices. Princess Celia of Mildesta, and…you. It has been my, ah, misfortune to meet with the family of Mildesta, and I cannot honestly tell you that I enjoyed their company. Which narrowed my bride to be down to one."_

_Resha stared at him, her eyes wide and mouth open. "S-Sir Lucia," she gasped out, feeling her heart race as he continued to play with her long hair, "I'm flattered to have been on your list of suitable wives alone. But, to be picked as the final choice? I surely am not worthy to marry one such as yourself."_

_Inwardly, she smirked. Nagisa would be so proud of her once she heard the news – it had been of her teaching that Resha learned to decline a marriage offer; grovel and act as if you are not worthy until they agreed. "Oh, but Lady Resha," countered Lucia slyly, stepping closer to her, "you are the carrier of Etherion. There is none more worthy than yourself to be my bride." Again, the brunette found herself gaping at the man._

_"It truly would be an honor to be your wife, King," she tried again, her voice shaking slightly, "however, it is Elie Village law that no maiden be wed before the age of eighteen. I am but four months past my fifteenth year."_

_The smirk slipped off of Lucia's face faster than Resha would have expected. "I see," he said slowly, leaning down close to her, "Then I shall await your eighteenth year, Resha Valentine. I need what you have. I've been waiting the first sixteen years of my life; what is three more?" Before she could say any more, he broke away from her, exiting without another word, leaving the princess standing into the middle of the room, shaking._

_Predictably, Sieg came running into the room seconds after Lucia left. "Resha?" he asked softly, walking to her and frowning. "Resha, are you…alright?"_

_"The…" tried Resha softly, her voice clumping together in her throat, "Golden King. Him. He's the one that…that…" Sieg's eyes widened, and he grabbed her shoulders tightly. The brunette shook her head, looking down, "Sieg, he's not going to stop. He's the one the prophecy spoke of! If he marries me like he wants to, then the whole world will be destroyed! But, he won't just stop and wait until I'm eighteen like he said! Oh, no, the prophecy said that it'll happen in the –"_

_Without warning, Sieg pulled the girl into his arms, pressing her face against his chest. In her shock – Sieg never touched her besides guiding her somewhere, or helping her up – the brunette stopped talking. "Resha Valentine," he said softly, gently rubbing her long hair, "I will not allow anyone in this world or any other world hurt you, or abuse you for Etherion."_

_The brunette simply hiccupped, closing her eyes tightly against his chest. "I must alert the other knights of this," he whispered, slowly releasing her. "Go where you deem fit. The others and I shall attend to the matter at hand," he said softly, gazing down at her seriously. Rather numbly, the girl nodded and headed out, going to the deepest part of the grounds to a small spring she had found._

_Once she had gotten there – how, she did not fully comprehend – Resha sat down on a small rock, picking up a tiny flower and staring at it, lost in her thoughts. "It's getting dark, Lady Resha. A beautiful young lady as yourself should not be out and about unprotected," called a deep voice, breaking her trance. Immediately, Resha jumped up, noticing quickly how the light of day had gone from a brilliant pink to a fiery red._

_"Shiba!" cried Resha, throwing the flower away and running to where he was, throwing her arms around him. He laughed, catching her and holding her tightly. "Shiba, I thought you were on a mission?"_

_The Knight smirked, setting her down on her feet. "I was. Well, am. I've been searching for the heir to Symphonia for months, but no luck. Hard to imagine that a country like mine is so large, but I've only been meeting with farmers once a week. Unless the kid left the country, I only have a couple more. So, I decided to come see you," he explained, his green eyes shining._

_Resha giggled. "And waste two months traveling?" she asked, rolling her eyes, "Come and sit with me. It's been so long since we last had a chance like this," she directed, grabbing his hand and sitting down on the rock, gesturing to one next to hers for him to sit on._

_The two talked for about an hour, exchanging stories from the last time they had met in January. When Resha reached the part of her recent visitor, the knight's eyes grew stony, but he said nothing on the matter. "I should be going," said Shiba once they were all done, standing, "I came by boat, and the owners of the boat said that they'd take me back if I got to them before nightfall," he explained, smiling apologetically at the princess. Resha sighed – that's how most of her friends' visits went – and stood with him, grabbing his hand again._

_"When will you be back?" she asked hopefully, staring into his dark green eyes. He sighed, shaking his head. "Tell me when you've found your heir," said the princess softly, reaching up and hugging him tightly. Shiba hugged her back, placing her back on her feet._

_"Resha, I know you'll do what's right. If that means running and hiding, then you'll do it. You mustn't let King Lucia gain control of you, and in turn…Etherion," he said in parting, leaning forward and kissing her forehead gently. Without another word, the knight slipped into darkness, disappearing in seconds. Resha stared at where he had disappeared from for a few seconds before running back to the castle, knowing well that her knights would not be pleased with her._

_Once she got to the doors, she was spotted by six people, all looking extremely worried. "Hiya!" called Resha cheerfully, waving to them. Immediately, all of them jumped to life, running towards her quickly._

_The largest of them all – though, admittedly, not by much – reached her first, grabbing her arms tightly. "I should beat you for vanishing like that, Resha!" screamed the man, his glasses slipping off his face. Immediately, a young girl appeared by his side, prying his hands off of her._

_"Dad, relax. We would have heard any disturbances on the grounds," said the girl casually, but with a silent glare to the princess._

_"Yuma, Nagisa!" barked another large man, towering over them both, "Release Lady Resha. Now is not the time to bicker and argue – we have more pressing matters at hand." Immediately, the other two backed off, silently glaring at each other and the man._

_Before he could speak, Resha held up a hand. "I have an idea that might prove to be a solution," she said softly, her heart racing. It had been Shiba's parting words that had inspired her, but they did not strike fear or terror into her heart as would have been imagined. It was like she was too shocked, too filled with unnecessary adrenaline to care whether what she was about to suggest would bring lasting consequences or not._

_"I want to leave Elie Village."_

~x~

Author's Note: Bahahaha, another cliff hanger! Mwuhahaha. Well, next chapter will begin with the rest of this story, a bit from Julia and Elie, and then…

Well, that's another surprise. ;D

Hope you all enjoyed~~


	16. Chapter 15: A Last Dance

Upside Down

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**Author's Note:** Yay! Finally! The fifteenth chapter! Hahaha. I know it might seem strange, what with me getting excited over the fifteenth chapter. Well, I have a good reason to be excited.  
One; Fifteen is both my age, and one of my favorite numbers. (OK, so this isn't a good reason. Bah.)  
Two; I've had it planned from the very beginning that the fifteenth chapter would be HIGHLY important. Of course, I didn't know how, but I knew it would be. And now I know why! x3

OH, by the way, I have a little memo here. As pointed out by Rune Caster, I got something wrong in previous chapters. ): I claimed that Let's hair was the color of wheat, but apparently, it's actually the same – if not incredibly close – as Haru's. Sigh. Sorry. Had I realized that sooner, I wouldn't have put wheat, but I was going by the anime pictures (and trust me, I did a LOT of research into the coloring of everyone possible), which got it wrong.

Also, be warned – I'm guessing this chapter is gonna be longer than my others. Why? Too much information, and I can't split it up this time. Sorry?

Enjoy~!

~x~

**Chapter Fifteen: A Last Dance**

_Immediately, all six of her guards flew into a frenzy of their own sorts. Sieg looked truly surprised and confused; Shuda looked murderous; Hardner, Yuma, and Nagisa were arguing amongst themselves again; and Julius had stopped dancing around to gape at her. "Princess, what are you talking about?" asked Sieg finally, holding up his hand to silence the others._

_"I'll assume that the rest of you have been told of my recent marriage proposal," replied the brunette casually, grinning up at them all. "Well, you can all see how marrying King Lucia would be bad. Not just for me, or Elie Village. But for the whole world! I can't let that happen."_

_Again, her knights flew into a frenzy. "Have you not thought of the consequences of you leaving, Lady Resha?" demanded Hardner angrily, throwing his large hands into the air. _

_"You are the only heir to the throne!" added Nagisa just as angrily as the other, "If you disappear and the King suffers a premature death, no one will be around to take the crown!"_

_Resha held up her hand to silence them. "Yes, Sir Hardner, I have thought of the consequences. But, I'm also thinking about the consequences of staying and allowing Lucia to pick me off like a sitting duck," she said, holding her hand up once more to ensure they stayed quiet, "Lady Nagisa, if my father dies while I'm away, you're right, I will not be around to accept the crown. But, you six will be here. Seven, counting Sir Deep Snow. I have utmost confidence that you'll be able to defend the castle and keep the peace in my absence."_

_Silently, Sieg stepped forward and leaned down to her height. "Lady Resha," he said softly, his violet eyes narrowing, "is that what you truly want?"_

_For a few minutes, Resha remained completely silent. Throughout the conversation, she had felt numbed. It was as if she was in shock. Now, however, her feelings were slowly leaking back into her body, feeling simultaneously scorching hot, and tundra cold. "No," she finally said softly, hanging her head, "But, it's what I have to do. I'm not doubting any of your abilities to protect me, but I do doubt that King Lucia will hesitate to declare war onto us if he returns and is attacked by the Eliean Knights."_

_"But, where will you go?" asked Julius seriously, peering at her from around Sieg. He was in one of his rare serious moods, complete with a worried expression and everything. "You might not be recognizable by face, Princess, but the entire world knows of you."_

_At that, Resha smiled. "They know Resha Valentine. If I were to go into hiding, I wouldn't want to literally hide away," she explained, sighing, "I'd want to…"_

_"Become a completely different person, perhaps?" suggested Shuda softly, speaking for the first time. All eyes turned to him, but his one eye never left Resha. "You're right, Princess. The last thing this world needs is a war. If Lucia were to declare war on us, then others would rise up. Both to help him, and to help us."_

_Yuma and Nagisa rolled their eyes. "Why should she become a completely different person?" demanded the older one angrily, glaring dangerously at him. "She is Princess Resha Valentine, not some peasant!"_

_As if his words had sparked something, Sieg and Shuda's heads suddenly snapped up, their eyes meeting. "You're right, Sir Yuma," said Sieg strangely, a curious expression on his face, "She's not a peasant. No one would expect a Princess of her caliber to walk among the poverty-stricken."_

_Shuda nodded in agreement, and slowly, the others began to understand. "No! Absolutely not!" cried Hardner, shaking his head firmly. "This is madness!"_

_Resha watched the argument ensue, each of her knights discussing the matter as if she was not here. "My, my, my. What a noisy group of people," said a sly voice from the behind them. Immediately, all seven of the people whipped around to find the speaker. "And it seems to be such an important matter. Perhaps the grounds is not the best place for such?"_

_"Hello, Sir Deep Snow," said Resha cheerfully, waving at him. He smiled at her vaguely, but did not reply._

_"Might I suggest we take this conversation to a more private area?" said Deep Snow softly, gesturing back to the castle. The other six exchanged a look of distaste, but nodded. "Come along, Princess."_

_The eight of them walked in silence up to a meeting chamber, nodding at maids and servants as they passed by. Just as they were nearing the room, Resha slipped away from the back. She had no interest in their arguments, and they wouldn't even notice her absence. She didn't want to be there for the verdict anyways._

_Quietly, she slipped through the flame-lit hallways, going for her fathers' study. "Hello?" she called, knocking softly on the door. Within seconds, he had opened the door for her widely, smiling down at his daughter._

_"Resha! Come in, come in," he said cheerily, moving aside for her to enter. Once she had settled into a large chair by the fire, the king sat down again, smiling at her. "How was your meeting with King Lucia?" he asked softly, watching his daughter carefully. Resha looked down at her hands for a second, debating whether or not she wanted to tell her father about the proposal._

_With a wide grin, she looked back up at him. "It went alright. He asked for my hand, and I politely turned him down," explained the brunette with a slight shrug. "However, I told him to come back when I was eighteen to discuss the matter once more."_

_Predictably, her father's mouth opened. "The king of Raregroove asked for your hand?" he repeated slowly, staring at his daughter as if he had never seen her. "I suppose he's a fine young man. I don't relish in the thought of my daughter married, however." Resha giggled, rolling her eyes casually._

_"It'll happen eventually, Dad," she reminded him. He sighed, nodding in agreement. "How come I can't start learning how to control Etherion?"_

_The question caught him off guard, and for a few moments, he simply stared at the fire. Just as he was finally about to answer, another knock was heard from the door. "My King?" called Nagisa softly._

_"Enter," replied the man tiredly, rubbing his eyes. Immediately, Nagisa entered, bowing deeply to both sets of royalty._

_"I hate to interrupt, my King, but I need to see Lady Resha," she said softly, making sure not to meet his gaze. King Valentine sighed, waving her up. "Thank you." Resha stood up, curtsied to her father once, and left with Nagisa. "You should have seen their faces when we realized you had slipped out on us," hissed Nagisa as they power-walked down the halls. "Did you tell your father?"_

_The brunette sighed, shaking her head. "I will tell him if the other knights want me to," she said softly, stopping suddenly. "Plue-chan!" she called, crouching down and opening her arms for him. From down the hall, he jumped up into the air, running towards her quickly. "He should be with us when we discuss it," explained Resha happily, scooping him up and continuing with Nagisa._

_Rather than answer, the knight simply held the door open for her, entering as soon as she had. "Don't," said Resha as soon as the door was closed. "You can all yell at me for leaving later. Have you reached a verdict?"_

_"We're about to take a vote," explained Sieg warily, glaring at her silently. "All in favor of Lady Resha leaving Elie Village to go into hiding, raise your hand."_

_With a racing heart, the princess watched as Sieg, Shuda, Nagisa, Yuma, and Julius raised their hands. "Majority rules," spoke Resha and Sieg together. "There is no reason to continue the vote," added Sieg carefully, eyeing each of the other knights, "It's been decided."_

_Resha stepped forward, commanding all attention. "As quickly as possible, I shall leave Elie Village. I'll change my appearance, I'll change my name, and I'll change my status. As of today, Resha Valentine is as good as dead."_

**END FLASHBACK**

For a few minutes, Elie and Julia remained silent. "You must have been so scared," said the queen finally, not meeting her gaze. "To give up everything, all because of one man. I can't even begin to imagine doing that."

The brunette shrugged. "It felt like I was in shock throughout the entire process. Sieg had left that night to come to Symphonia, and I was whisked away to my room to wait until he sent back the all clear. I knew it was going to happen. How could I not?" she asked, holding her head in her hands, "But when it finally did, it all happened so fast. Yuma appeared and told me to grab my bags. Five minutes later, I was in a carriage on the way to Symphonia. Five miles later, I switched carriages and bid goodbye to Yuma and began to ride with Julius. Ten more miles, and I switched again, and bid goodbye to Julius and began to ride with Shuda. He stayed with me until I got to Symphonia."

Quietly, Julia reached over and wrapped an arm around her shoulder carefully, pulling her against her. She had nothing to say about the matter, and instead simply held the younger girl as she cried. "Haru doesn't know, does he?" she finally asked softly.

"N-no," replied Elie. "He knows that I'm…hiding something. But…but, I couldn't. Julia, I just couldn't."

The blonde nodded knowingly, pulling away and standing up. "You're so strong, Elie," she said softly, smiling down at her, "When the time comes, I'm sure you'll do the right thing." Elie stared at her, feeling her anger and frustration begin to boil over.

"Why does everyone keep telling me that?" demanded the brunette, standing up and throwing her arms in the air. "I'm not a miracle worker, for Christ's sake! I'm human! And human's make mistakes! They don't always do the 'right' thing, so why does everyone expect _me_ to do the right thing?" Julia froze, staring at the girl in surprise, but Elie wasn't finished. "Is it because of Etherion? Does everyone think that because Etherion is a gift from the God's, I'm a demigod or something? Well, it isn't true!"

Before Elie could continue, Julia reached forward and embraced the girl tightly, holding her head just above her chest. "Shh," she soothed softly, rubbing her back, "I know. Things are hard for you. But, if you don't shut your mouth, the whole village will hear you."

Elie hiccupped against her, closing her eyes tightly. "I know," she whispered, wrapping her arms around her and gripping the back of her shirt.

Usually, the brunette did everything in her power not to let the sadness she had felt since leaving Elie Village take over. When she was with Haru, Elie could ever forget that it even existed. When she was with Sieg and Niebel, or Shuda, she had to carefully hide it otherwise they'd whisk her back to her throne faster than she could gasp in shock. But now, in Julia's embrace, it was simply too hard not to allow the flood of sadness to come out. So, Elie allowed all her defenses to crumble as she sobbed into Julia's front.

The blonde didn't say a word, and instead simply held the younger girl and allowed her to ruin her dress with her tears.

**x**

"How do I look?"

Belnika giggled, looking back up at him. "I'm not done yet," she answered happily, going back to her sewing. Haru laughed nervously as well, hanging his head for a second, "For the fifth time, my Prince."

"Right. Sorry," he apologized happily. He had been standing on a small podium with his arms outstretched for an hour now, getting into the clothes he would be wearing for the dance that would be taking place in roughly five minutes. "Am I almost done at least?"

Belnika giggled again, not answering him. "You are…finished!" she said after a minute or two, pulling away and admiring him. Haru grinned at her happily, jumping down and turning to the full length mirror that had been standing behind him throughout the entire fitting.

He had seen what he was wearing, of course, but the prince had never seen it when it was actually _on_ someone; the shirt was silk and the color of snow, with a dark blue vest going down the front. His slacks were cream colored satin, with a spiraling design going down it. Around his shoulders was a long, flowing cape, blue on the outside, white on the inside, with the Symphonian crest freshly stitched into it. On his head was a pure gold crown with a single sapphire situated in the middle. "Wow!" gasped Haru in amazement, running his hands around his outfit. "Oh, are you gonna be watching Plue for me during the dance? I don't want him to get lost or stolen on me."

"You look very handsome," replied Belnika with a slight blush. "I would be honored to look after Master Plue for you. He's been sleeping for some time, so he shouldn't be a problem."

"Thanks." The prince turned back to her and grinned. "You really think so? I mean, most of them are gonna be married or engaged or old and stuff," he answered, rubbing the back of his head nervously. Belnika reached up and pried his hand away, shaking her head slightly.

"Yeah, but the one you'll really want to impress will be there to see you," she replied, crossing her arms against her chest. In the past several months, she had recently began to become more casual with him. She still blushed a lot whenever he said her name, and he was fairly certain she still harbored feelings for him, but the maid had calmed down a great deal since they first met. "I asked her yesterday. She'll definitely be there."

Haru looked at her curiously. "Why wouldn't she make it? I mean, Celia's staring at the castle," he asked, tilting his head to the side. Immediately, his maids' face turned beet red. "Unless you were talking about…Elie?"

Belnika hung her head. "I'm sorry, my Prince. It's not my place to make assumptions between the two of you," she said softly, not meeting his gaze. Haru sighed, waving away her worries.

"Nah. Assume all you want," he said airily, taking a deep breath and turning to leave. "You really think Elie'll be impressed?" he asked softly, pausing. Belnika grinned up at him, nodding eagerly. The prince grinned back at her once more before leaving the room and heading quickly through the halls down to the grand ballroom.

The prince had decided to stay far away from the preparations for the ball, choosing to let the designers that were hired do their job. Instead, he spent the greater majority of his time with Alpine and Clea, learning everything that he'd need to do once he was king. When he wasn't studying, he was with Shiba, training with a sword. Musica had promised to have his sword ready by the time he was crowned – as a gift to the new king, he called it – so he had been virtually invisible the past four days. When he had a spare moment, the prince was with Princess Celia, talking and trying to envision his future relationship.

Recently, he had found himself growing rather bored with his fiancé. She enjoyed talking about herself, her sister, or her country more than she enjoyed listening. It didn't help that every time Haru mentioned Elie, Celia turned a deaf ear. She wouldn't even answer when asked why she didn't like her, which only irritated the prince. Haru, while certain that he loved her, was beginning to have his doubts about the two of them living happily.

Of course, he kept this little bit of information to himself. Julia would never let him live it down if she heard that he was doubting his future marriage with Celia, nor would Musica. And, Elie was so supportive of his relationship that he was afraid to burst her bubble and tell her that it might not work out.

"Ah, the honored prince has finally decided to join his guests," said a sly voice, breaking his train of thoughts. Immediately, Haru scowled, turning towards the man speaking. He was standing in front of the doors to the ballroom, his arms crossed against his chest menacingly.

"Unless I've miscalculated, I've actually arrived quite on time, King Lucia," said Haru blandly, moving to push past him. "I can't imagine that you're waiting for a date, so why are _you_ out here?"

The blonde scowled right back at him, rolling his golden eyes. "What I do, or what I wait for, does not, nor will it ever, concern you, Glory," he snapped, moving aside to let him pass. Haru rolled his eyes as well, feeling hatred boiling in his stomach as he gently pushed open the doors and entered.

The last time he had been in the room, it had been rather boring looking. Simple colored walls, cheery wood floor. Nothing out of the ordinary from the rest of the rooms, really. Now, however, the walls were lined with holly and the occasional mistletoe. What looked like real ice sculptures were placed strategically throughout the room, never interfering with the dance floor. Tables were set on the back wall, taking up about one third of room space itself, each table lined with a multitude of chairs, white cloth and pearly white dishes visible even from the distance he was at. In the center of the opposite corner was a long table, with thirteen places set. Haru knew that it was set for – from the farthest left to farthest right – Medigo, Doryu, Haja, Jiero, Lucia, Uta, a place for himself, Celia, Fumia, Reina, Musica, Julia, Let. Another long table with similar decorations was off set perpendicularly to their right, with five places set for Alpine, Clea, Dalmatian, Deerhound, and Shiba. Though there were people – hundreds of them, ninety percent being people that Haru had never seen before in his life – lining the walls, no one had stepped onto the dance floor. Immediately, nervousness flooded into the prince, and he stepped in, trying to smile.

As he walked to the center of the room, a hush fell over the crowd. His knights were standing in front of their table, while most of his visitors – not counting Doryu, who had just arrived this morning and intended to leave once the ball was over – stood in front of their places as well. Only Lucia and Reina appeared to be absent, as if the two had other matters to attend to. As he passed them, Musica, Let, Julia, and Celia smiled at him encouragingly.

Once he was in front of his seat at the center, he paused and turned around the other guests. Clea and Alpine had been helping prepare a greeting, but it seemed to be lost in his absolute nervousness. "Welcome!" Haru said suddenly, his mind jumping to action. Everything seemed to be moving slowly, or he was just moving very fast. "It truly is an honor to have you all gathered here for the crowning of a prince that – until recently – was just a farmer in his birth." He smiled widely, his heart racing as he scanned the crowd for Elie and Sieg – nothing. "Please enjoy yourselves to the fullest, guests, friends, and neighbors," added Haru after a second, remembering to pause the way Clea had directed him to earlier, "Let us dance and talk the night away!"

Immediately, his guests applauded, sounding a great deal more enthusiastic than he would have hoped. Several couples began to head to the dance floor and, before he could retreat behind the table, Celia grabbed his hand. "Dance with me, Haru-chan," she asked happily. For the first time since he had entered, Haru got a good look at his fiancé, inwardly gasping.

Her long blue hair was up in an elaborate up do, a small golden tiara with a single diamond in it laying on her hair carefully. Her dress was strapless, just low enough to show off her impressive bust but still keep what needed to be hidden, hidden. The color was a dark purple, flowing all the way down to her ankles. A white sash was tied right under her bust, emphasizing it even more than it already was. As usual, her bracelets and armlets were there, along with a designed tattoo on her hand, but a single silver chain was also around her neck this time.

"O-of course," replied Haru softly, grinning at his fiancé. Despite her seemingly lack of real personality, it was impossible to deny that Celia was one of the most beautiful women in the entire world.

Silently, they stepped onto the center of the dance floor, and Haru slipped a hand around her thin waist as she placed her free hand on his shoulder. "You look very handsome tonight, Prince," said Celia softly, smiling at him. Her cheeks were as pale as ever, but there was a slight hint of make up on her.

Haru smiled down at her, and the dance began. "I'm a candle compared to how _you_ look tonight, Princess," he replied softly, twirling her. Celia giggled, shrugging. "Will Fumia be leaving soon, or will she stay for the funeral?" he asked after a little bit, continuing on with the dance.

Again, Celia shrugged. "I think she plans to leave shortly after the ball. Mildesta has gone long enough without her," she explained. Haru nodded, and the two remained silent for the rest of the dance. Once it was over, they broke apart, heading back up to the table. Let and Julia were on the floor, dancing together happily, but Musica had remained where he was, looking rather tired. As she was about to sit down another young man appeared and asked for a dance, which Celia accepted with another giggle, disappearing back into the crowd and leaving Haru and Musica behind.

"You look tired, man," commented Haru, leaning against the table next to him. Musica grinned at him, shrugging.

"You're sword was a bitch to make," he replied casually, yawning. "Took me three damn days to get it right. I had to restarted like…ten times," he explained with a smirk, not meeting his gaze. "Man. There are just about _no_ hot ladies here."

Haru didn't answer him, also staring into the crowd. However, he wasn't searching anymore – he had found what he was looking for. "H-hey, Musica," he said, reaching as if to tap his arm and missing, "You're wrong. You are so, so wrong." That said, the prince took off, heading towards the farthest door from them, ignoring Musica's reply.

Even from the distance he was at, Haru could tell that they were more finely dressed than he would have imagined possible for the two. As he walked, everything else disappeared in his vision, leaving only a young girl. The girl was dressed in a pale pink, strapless dress. The top went down as far as Celia's did, but this girls' bust was much more impressive than hers, even with her sash lower down. Her pale skin was glowing in the lighting, putting the other woman around her to shame. Her short brown hair was twisted into an up do similar to Celia's, though no ornament was on her head. Long white gloves were on her hands, going up to her elbows with a gold trimming. As always, a simply necklace was around her neck, heart shaped and made of silver.

"Elie," breathed Haru as he got closer, feeling his head spin. Elie was beautiful, he knew, but now...now, she put every other woman in the room to shame. "Elie!"

Surprised, she turned around, her brown eyes wide. As soon as Haru saw those brown sphere's, he felt his heart begin to race, though he didn't know why. After a second of searching, their eyes met and she smiled at him. "Haru!" Immediately, Haru quickened his pace, reaching her after a minute. Next to her stood Sieg Hart, dressed in a silk shirt that was similar to Haru's, with a golden vest on. His trousers were black satin as well, but his had no designs on them, nor did he had a cape.

"Hello, Prince Haru," said the older man politely, gazing down at him through his long blue hair. One hand was placed on Elie's shoulder, keeping her place. "It's an honor to have been invited."

Haru grinned, shrugging. "Elie's my best friend, and I figured that you wouldn't have let her come unless you were around to keep her safe," he answered honestly. Sieg smiled slightly, silently agreeing. "May I steal her away from you, Sieg Hart?"

Predictably, Elie's lower lip jutted out in a pout. Sieg chuckled slightly, removing his hand. "Certainly, Prince. On the condition that you return her," he jested. Haru smiled, promising that he would, which only earned him a slap on the arm from his friend. "Elie," said Sieg as she was about to leave, stopping her, "Remember where we are, and your place."

The brunette turned back to him and stared as intensely as he was. "How could I ever forget?" she asked softly, smiling at him strangely. "Don't worry Sieg," Elie said cheerfully, "Haru's here. I'll be fine."

Happily, the two took off towards the dance floor. Haru gently wrapped his arm around her waist as he had with Celia, and she laid her hand on his shoulder. As they began to dance, Haru soon realized just how different dancing with Elie was than with Celia. For one thing, he felt a great deal more nervous with Elie than Celia, and for another thing, Elie was a brilliant dancer. She had the grace of someone who had been dancing since a young age, and even though Haru had next to no dancing ability, he never wanted it to end.

"Elie," said Haru after a little bit, dipping the brunette deeply, "did I mention that you look absolutely gorgeous tonight?" Immediately, his cheeks filled with color, and as he lifted her back, he noticed that hers had as well.

Elie giggled. "No, but thank you for the compliment," she said, grinning at him. "Of course, however good I look right now is nothing to how any of the princesses or duchesses or queens look tonight," she said softly after a second, hesitating once more, "Or how you look." Haru frowned slightly, keeping his arm where it was as the song ended.

For a few seconds, the two stared into the others' eyes. "Come on, let's go get some air," suggested Haru softly, taking her hand in his and leading her out. Elie followed him without question, keeping pace with the prince as the two slipped through the crowd of people. "I won't actually get crowned until midnight, so we have a couple hours to talk and dance," he explained as they left the room and began heading down the corridors. Several other couples were in the hallways, but neither the prince nor his friend paid attention to anyone they passed.

Once they got outside, the two began to walk around the grounds, staring at the stars. "Haru, you know, tomorrow's my birthday," said Elie after they had been walking for several minutes in silence. "I'll be sixteen. Just like you."

"Really? You're birthday's the New Year?" Haru asked in surprise, staring at his friend. They hadn't let go of each other's hands, but it felt so natural, so easy, Haru couldn't bring himself to pull away. "That must have been the best New Year's gift your parents ever got, huh?" Elie laughed, grinning up at him.

"That's what they told me," she answered, stopping and looking up at the sky. Haru glanced up at the stars with her after a second, gently squeezing her hand as he did so. The brunette didn't move an inch except to gently squeeze back; a simple reply to a simple message.

The two stood there star gazing for some time, neither one caring much on how much time was really passing. Then, without warning, Elie pulled on his arm, grinning. "Dance with me," she directed, blushing slightly, "Please." Haru laughed, allowing his body to go where she directed it. Wordlessly, she slipped his arm around her waist again and placed her hand on his shoulder again, looking at him hopefully.

The prince sighed. "There's no music," he pointed out, pouting at her. Elie laughed, shrugging. "And I'm not that good at dancing."

Again, Elie simply laughed. "You don't have to be good," she said softly, all grins, "I'm good enough that the two of us don't need music. Just follow my lead, OK?" she directed gently, beginning the dance. Haru nodded slightly, looking down at his feet to ensure they stayed clear from Elie's toes. As she said, Elie was a much better dancer than he was, and gently led him in a dance he had never seen before. After a few minutes, he looked back up at his partner and smiled, finally getting the hang of it.

As the dance continued, Haru felt a whisper of thought in his head – he would rather be out in the cold, not dressed properly, and dancing without music with Elie than inside the warm castle dancing with any other girl. A smile appeared on his lips, and he nodded to himself in agreement.

**x**

It was a dance Elie had danced a hundred times in her life, maybe more. But, she had never danced with a partner before, despite knowing the man's dance. Haru was beginning to catch on, which was a relief, so the dance was just about complete. "You're not that bad, Haru," said the brunette after a second, grinning at him.

The prince laughed. "Well, you're just so good, it's hard to be bad," he said kindly, sticking her tongue out at her.

"Don't you two think it's a tad bit cold for a moonlight stroll?"

Immediately, Elie jumped away from Haru, her heart pounding. The prince was already facing the speaker, but Elie made no motion to reveal her face. "Oh, hey Shiba!" called Haru cheerfully, laughing. "It's not _that_ cold. But, what are you doin' out here anyways?"

Elie looked up at Haru fearfully, trying to convey a secret message to him, but the prince was looking at Shiba, too focused to glance back down. "I came to find you. Your fiancé is not pleased with your disappearance, Prince," said the knight casually, yawning. "Come on. You wouldn't wanna catch a cold. Either of you." Haru nodded, and began to walk towards Shiba.

The brunette took a deep breath, turning around and following him. She could feel Shiba's eyes on her, but she kept her own eyes in front of her, refusing to look towards him. However, past her indifferent exterior, the brunette was mentally freaking out – Shiba was here. Shiba would recognize her. She's have to explain her story all over again, and this time, Haru could overhear. Or, worse, Lucia could overhear!

"Ah," said Shiba softly from behind her, "This must be the famous Elie I've heard so much about." Elie giggled slightly, turning around and grinning at him. As soon as their eyes met, Elie knew – he knew.

Haru laughed as well, seemingly not noticing any tension. "I wouldn't go so far as to say I'm _famous_," the brunette said cheerily, lightly hitting Haru. "Geez, Haru, don't you know it's rude to talk about other people?" Haru laughed again, holding his hands up in defeat. "What else have you said about me?"

"Nothing _bad_!" cried Haru as she went to smack him. "Aw, come on, Elie! You know I wouldn't go around telling other people about you get hopelessly lost and –"

Elie didn't give him a chance to finish his sentence – she leaned forward and smacked his arm hard enough to shut him up. "Shut up!" she cried, her cheeks blushing. From behind, Shiba simply watched them, a strange smile on his face. "I don't care if you become Lord of the Universe, either. I'm gonna treat you like I treat everyone else."

Before Haru could reply, there was a slight throat clearing, silencing all of them. "A-ah," said Haru in surprise, his eyes wide, "Hello Celia."

The brunette looked down before the princess could glare at her, folding her hands together gently. "Elie," said Shiba softly, placing a hand on her shoulder carefully, "perhaps it would be best if we gave the two some privacy." Elie nodded immediately, turning back to Haru and smiling slightly before quickly disappearing into the castle, Shiba at her heel. "That dance was beautiful, by the way," the knight complimented as they walked, suddenly going ahead of her and stopping her.

"Thank you."

Shiba smiled at her, placed a hand on her cheek. "You look gorgeous," he said softly, his green eyes glassy. "I knew that you hadn't just gone missing. That's why I refused to go out and look for you," he said even softer, laughing slightly, "I wouldn't have expected you to be the same friend Haru's been seeing for all these months, though."

Elie chuckled, looking up at him. "You were what inspired me, Shiba," she said softly, tears beginning to form in her eyes. Shiba simply chucked as well, pulling her into his arms.

"God, I've missed you. I didn't think…I mean, after all, the whole world thought you had gone missing. A lot of people thought you were…dead," he said in her ear, a smile on his voice. Elie nodded against him, closing her eyes as a single tear leaked out.

"I'm so close. Just a little bit, and I can go home," replied the brunette gently, pulling away to smile at him. "Shiba, will you dance with me? I want my last dance as Elie to be with someone special." The knight gazed down at her, tears falling from his eyes as well as he nodded. "Come on. I don't know how much time we have before Celia and Haru come down the hall."

Shiba chuckled. "If I know Celia – and it's been my misfortune to see a great deal of her lately – she'll be a while. Poor Haru," he muttered. Elie laughed as well, sticking her tongue out at him.

**(Author's Note: This next bit will be happening at the **_**same time as the Elie-Shiba bit**_**. Just to let you all know.)**

Haru looked at the ground, completely lost for words. "So, this is what it's come to," said Celia anyways, her voice more venomous than ever before, "Sneaking away to dance with some _peasant_!"

At that, the prince looked up and shook his head. "Elie isn't just some peasant, Celia!" he snapped, letting his temper slip away. Celia gasped, and Haru sighed. "Listen, I didn't plan to dance with Elie out on the grounds. We just left the ballroom for some fresh air, and one thing led to another, and –"

"'One thing led to another'?" cried the princess, throwing her arms in the air. "You're about to be a _king_! And not just that, you're about to be a king that's _engaged_! You can't run around dancing with anyone _but_ the person your engaged to!" Celia took a deep breath, her cheeks bright red, "I didn't want to have to do this. I thought you would be different from your father, but I guess not. Well, I'm not gonna sit around and go through the same thing that Fumia went through."

Haru gaped at her, too stunned for words. "I want you to choose, Haru. Right now. Me, your beautiful fiancé of royal blood, or Elie, some dirty peasant."

For a few seconds, the two simply stared at each other. Haru's eyes were wide with surprise and confusion, and as he continued to stare into her angry blue sphere's, he realized that she had a point. His father had went behind his entire country's back and fell in love with a farmers' daughter. He had even gone so far as to have children with the farmers' daughter! Haru couldn't do the same thing, not to Celia. Besides, he loved her. Didn't he?

The answered appeared in Haru's mind just as suddenly as the question had – no. No, he didn't truly love Celia. He had simply been attracted to her, and there was indeed a difference. Somewhere along the course of the past seven months, he had certainly fallen in love, but with the wrong person.

Haru had fallen in love with Elie. He had fallen so deeply, so irreversibly, it was truly a wonder he ever confused the two.

_But, I have to marry Celia. Julia and Let agreed to sign a peace treaty with Fumia the day after our marriage, and Haja agreed to sign a similar one after Let and Julia did. The entire world is depending on this unity,_ he thought glumly, bowing his head. No matter how much he loved Elie, and how little he was suddenly attracted to Celia, he had to choose the girl in front of him. It was the only choice he had.

"How could you even ask me that?" demanded Haru shakily, looking back at her with what he hoped was anger. "Of course I'm gonna choose you!" What the prince failed to mention were the reasons behind his decision. Before Celia could say anything, Haru grabbed her arms and kissed her roughly on the lips, feeling his heart break with every second that passed.

**(Author's Note: OK, now we're back to the regular chronological order.)**

"How do you think your people will react when you return?" asked Shiba as the two danced, his eyes never leaving hers. Elie sighed, shrugging.

"They'll probably be pretty angry. I did just kinda vanish into thin air, after all," replied the brunette softly, closing her eyes as she was dipped. "At least I'll be able to start practicing magic now, though. Sieg said he might even begin my lessons on the way back to Elie Village."

Shiba frowned. "Sieg Hart's here with you? No wonder such chaos has ensued in the capitol. Sieg is a marvelous man when it comes to keeping the peace," he commented, smiling at her slightly. "You're lucky to have such good knights in your kingdom." At that, Elie chuckled, pulling away from him as the dance ended.

"I'm not so sure about that. The Knights of the Blue Sky are considered the strongest in the world," said Elie carefully, curtsying at him.

Shiba laughed, taking her hand and beginning to lead her to the table he was seated at, planning to continue talking to her. "Excuse me," interrupted someone, placing a hand on Elie's shoulder firmly to stop them. Immediately, Elie felt as if cold water had just been drenched on top of her, and she shivered despite the warmth of the room. "I was just wondering if I could cut in."

Slowly, the knight and the brunette turned to look at the man. "That would be up to my dear friend," said Shiba icily, glaring at the man, "King Lucia." Lucia smirked, shrugging.

"Would you grant me with a dance?" he asked Elie softly, gazing down at her as if he would much rather eat her than dance. As Elie was about to open her mouth to resist, the blonde's smirk widened. "Certainly you wouldn't deny me a dance, young lady? Just one simple dance is all I ask for. Prince Haru will be crowned soon, and I'd like to have my sole dance with one as beautiful as you."

Elie shivered again, not tearing her eyes away from Lucia. "I suppose…one dance couldn't hurt," she said softly, a feeling of dread in her stomach. Shiba didn't reply, but Elie could feel his stony understanding on her back as the blonde king led her back to the dance floor, slipping his arm around her carefully as Haru and Shiba had. "I'm honored that a king such as yourself would stoop as low to request a dance with a mere peasant like myself," Elie said softly, feeling her throat begin to close up.

Lucia chuckled. "The honor is all mine, fair princess," he whispered in her ear, too quiet for others to hear. "Finally, after sending those idiotic Blue Guardians to search for you, I have you. Did I not warn you that running was futile, Lady Resha?"

"You have me mistaken," said Elie firmly, refusing to allow him the satisfaction of knowing he had her intimidated. "I'm but a simple peasant."

The blonde chuckled again, his breath weaving trails of ice down her ear and neck. "Do not lie to me, Resha Valentine," he hissed, a new menace in his tone, "it will simply make your situation all the worse."

Elie's eyes narrowed. "And what situation would that be?" she asked just as softly, glaring at the blonde, "We are in a crowded room, with a knight of my own standing by, and the Knights of the Blue Sky in close proximity, as well as Prince Haru. You simply have no choice but to lie low," she pointed out, dropping all pretenses of trying to deny who she was. Groveling and lying wouldn't help her now – she had to be strong, just the way Yuma and Nagisa had taught her.

"Ah yes, but I have the Blue Guardians, King Medigo, King Doryu, Queen Jiero, King Haja, and King Uta under my control."

Before Elie could say any more, Lucia placed a hand over her mouth, dragging her up to the front of the room. Automatically, the brunette began to struggle, closing her eyes as she clawed at his hand. As she struggled, she began to hear screams and bangs. Surprised, she looked up and watched as an army of people she had mostly never seen before began to storm the entire room. They began to attack the other guests, laughing at their screams of terror and pain. Amongst the army, Elie saw Medigo, Jiero, Doryu, Uta, and Haja fighting. However, she also saw a man larger than life in the midst, commanding seven others – Hardner and his seven best ranking generals: Sean Vivera, Koala, Reevil, Leopard, Giraffe, Lukan, and even Lunar. **(Author's Note: I'm not sure if these are the actual names for the Blue Guardians. Please contact me if I'm wrong and you have the correct ones)** Elie felt tears well up in her eyes that had nothing to do with the pressure from Lucia's hand; Hardner had been working with Lucia, and for how long?

Lucia stepped up to the center of the table where Haru should be seated, and grabbed a thick sword from a soldier that offered to him. "Silence!" he screamed. Immediately, everything halted. "As of today, this world is mine. Any and all who dare to oppose me shall taste death by my allies!"

"And what makes you so damn sure we're gonna let you get away with this?" demanded a tall, tanned woman with long black hair. She was currently engaged in a battle with Leopard, but the battle had reached a standstill due to Lucia's call to attention.

With a wide smirk, Lucia released his hand from Elie's mouth and instead pushed her to her knees, one hand grabbing a chunk of her hair to keep her in place. "I have the power of Etherion on my side," he announced grandly. Predictably, everyone in the room gasped and began to talk amongst themselves. Elie shook her head desperately, closing her eyes tightly.

"He's lying! Don't listen to –" she tried to scream, only to be stopped by a kick in the gut by her captor. From the crowd, there were several cries of her name – Elie, not Resha – but she ignored them.

Lucia laughed loudly. "In my hands here, I have found the famous wielder of Etherion!" he screamed, placing his sword against the back of her neck. Elie froze in his shakes at the touch of the cool metal, feeling the sharpness of it. "Princess Resha Valentine has been amongst you fools all evening! Yet, none of you are smart enough to realize it!" Again, the entire crowd gasp, but they remained silent. "That's right. This young wench in my hands in none other than Lady Resha Valentine herself! Hiding in the shadows because of _me_!

"I hope you all enjoyed your last dance," cried the king evilly as the clock began to chime for midnight, "Because it's the last dance you'll ever live to enjoy."

~x~

**Author's Note: **I really am getting bad with these cliff hangers, aren't I? Mwuhaha. Again, sorry (?) this is so long – a LOT of things needed to be put in!  
And again, if you know the names of all six Blue Guardians (and Lunar), please, PLEASE contact me and tell me so I can fix them! I'll even give you credit! I hope you all enjoyed! Reviews are loved to the extreme, and please don't kill me for cutting off at such an important part of the story!


	17. Chapter 16: So It Begins

Upside Down

~x~

Author's Note: Hm. Well, this chapter SHOULD be interesting. I'm sort of writing on a vague idea that came into existence last night as I was cleaning my room, but…well. This story seems to have a way of working itself out, I've noticed. :D

Enjoy~

~x~

**Chapter Sixteen: So It Begins**

"We need a plan," said Dalmatian softly, hanging his head. "We are all that is left of the ceremony, we are unarmed, and we are being held captive in our own dungeon."

Next to him, Deerhound scoffed. "The only thing we need to worry about right now is getting that girl away from Lucia," he said angrily, gripping the bars and trying to pry them open. He and Dalmatian were in a cell together, as were Julia and Celia, Let and Shiba, Reina and Clea, Alpine and Musica, Sieg and Fumia, and Haru by himself. The others hadn't spoken in some time, too afraid and worried.

"Actually," spoke up Celia shakily, "we should worry more about ourselves first. Elie can wait."

Within seconds, Julia had grabbed the front of her dress – or what she could grab, anyways – and slammed her against the wall. "You just aren't getting it, are you, you selfish piece of –"

"Queen Julia!" barked Fumia from across the hall, leaning her face against the grimy bars, "Release my sister this instant!" The blonde scoffed, releasing the princess and watching as she crawled over to the other edge. "Thank you."

From the cell next to Fumia's, Musica stuck his hand out and, with his middle finger raised, directed the motion towards Fumia. "Deerhound is right," said Alpine, grabbing the princes' hand and yanking it back in the cage, "Sieg Hart. I believe you live with that young girl, correct? I will thank you to tell us how dire the situation truly is."

Sieg sighed, closing his eyes and leaning his head back against the cage. "We've been in here for about thirty minutes," he said softly, covering his eyes, "Assuming Lucia has a method of unsealing Etherion, we have approximately –"

"Cut the time bullshit!" Julia cried, gripping the bars angrily and shaking them slightly, "You and I know the story, but none of these fools do. If you don't tell em', I will. I've sworn no vows against it."

A silence filled the room, broken only by the scurry of mice and their breathing. "Did none of you hear the King?" said Sieg, irritation breaking through his seemingly indifferent attitude for the first time, "The child I've had in my care the past six months – give or take – is none other than Lady Resha Valentine. The 'Blessing from the Gods', the 'Wielder of Etherion', the 'Goddesses Reincarnation', whatever makes you happy. And Lucia Raregroove – the Golden King of execrable himself – has taken her as his own. What more is there to tell?"

Julia sighed, closing her eyes and hitting her head against the bars of the cage in agitation. "Yeah, we got that," said Deerhound loudly, "What the hell is _the_ Resha Valentine doing as a peasant in Symphonia? Shouldn't she be learning to control Etherion, or missing?"

"She went into hiding because Lucia came to Elie Village to ask for her hand."

Once again, silence filled the room. The speaker had spoken soft enough to reach those around him, but not loud enough to show any emotion, from a cell that was almost empty and the last in the line on the right hand side. "Prince, how did you know that?" asked Sieg softly, straining to look into the boy's cell. "Elie didn't tell you, did she?"

Haru scoffed, lightly hitting his head against the wall as Sieg had done earlier. "Elie told me that Lucia came to Elie Village to ask Resha Valentine for her hand. I just put two and two together," he said, staring at his hands. Nothing was making sense to him anymore, not even why he was in a dungeon. They had said that's where he was, right? "I gotta save her."

Before Haru had fully understood that he had spoken out loud again, laughter rung out through the cage, followed by a series of footsteps towards them, "You? Save that little girl? From what? The Boogie Man?" the man continued on past the other cells, stopping at Haru's and gazing down at him. "Lucia is unstoppable. And once the seal on that bitch's Etherion has been broken, he'll become a God! And there ain't no man strong enough to defeat a God!"

"Don't you dare talk about Elie that way!" screamed Haru, jumping up. Within a second, he had grabbed the man's shirt and pulled him closer, veins throbbing in his forehead and neck. "Call her that again. I dare ya'."

Silence settled over the entire dungeon; no one appeared to be even breathing. "Bitch," the man breathed with a smirk, bursting out into laughter again. Haru's eyes grew wide, and he reared back his right fist, punching the man faster than he could ever blink, and stronger than any other he had thrown. Stunned, the man stumbled back, falling against the bars to the opposite cell. "You bastard!" the man screamed, clutching his cheek.

Haru simply stared at him, feeling his blood boiling in his body. "Get me out of this cage," he said, clenching his fists together so tightly, his nails were cutting into his palms, "And you'll see how much of a bastard I really am."

"Prince Haru!" cried Dalmatian, grabbing the bars tightly. "Prince, I understand you are upset, but calm yourself! Rash decisions will not aid our situation!"

The prince closed his eyes, trying to calm himself down. Never before had he ever allowed his temper lash out like that. But, the way that man had spoken so lowly of Elie…as if she was some piece of trash that was easily replaced or thrown away… "You're lucky that you're out there," he said hotly, "I wouldn't have stopped with just a punch otherwise."

"You just wait, Glory," snapped the man, rubbing his bruising jaw, "You'll regret opposing Lucia Raregroove. All of you idiots will." None of them showed any sign of defeat, but Sieg slowly stood up. "Sieg Hart," the same said in a drawling voice, walking in front of his cell, "From the day I met you, I've wanted to see you thrown in jail. And now I finally get my chance."

The sorcerer scoffed. "I should have known hiring an executioner to defend Lady Resha was a foolish mistake," he said, crossing his arms against his chest, "I suppose you chose those seven generals because of, what? They were every bit as evil as you were, Hardner?"

Hardner laughed, turning to leave. "You always were a fool, Sieg Hart. Blinded by your love for an insignificant little girl and a useless country. Have none of you realized it yet?" he suddenly called, turning around and spreading his large arms wide, "It's love that brought you all here! Love for your country, love for one another, love for your friends, and even a love triangle! It will be the defeat of all of you!"

"You love your daughter, do you not?" said Sieg softly, watching as the man's eyes dropped.

Hardner looked up, glaring at him. "My daughter died before birth," he snapped, clenching his fists tightly. Sieg simply laughed, bowing his head.

"Did she? Fate has a funny way of working, does it not?" he asked, laughing again. Hardner stared at him for a few seconds before scoffing and leaving. As soon as he was gone, Sieg silenced, dropping to his knees glumly. "We need to get out of these cells," he said, closing his eyes tightly.

"Dude," said Musica, not watching Sieg, "you can't break the bars." Immediately, everyone else went to their cell doors, straining to see who he was talking to. Those on the left side watched as Haru gripped the bars of the cell tightly, shaking slightly in the effort he was putting into breaking the bars. Those on the right side demanded to know what was happening, but no one answered them, as they were too enthralled by Haru.

After a few seconds of trying to bend them, the bars finally began to creak. Haru didn't stop to check his progress, but instead poured more strength into it. "Elie," he started to say as the metal began to bend, "needs…me!" On the last word, the bars broke free from the ceiling, taking large chunks of the rock with them. Haru didn't even look up as he stepped out of the cage, looking around. "Where's the dungeon master?" he asked his knights, breathing heavily.

The five of them simply stared at him, too awed for words. "Wait!" Musica suddenly cried, jumping up, "These bars. What are they made of?"

Alpine turned to him curiously, still awed by Haru's display of power. "Iron, I believe. Iron and steel. The finest in the country. Or, so I was led to believe," he said strangely, taking a deep breath. Musica grinned widely, pushing the man out of the way.

"Haru," he said, putting his hands over the bars, "if you can break iron and steel with your bare hands, then I, a silverclaimer, should be able to manipulate them, right?" Haru watched his friend for a second, a smile appearing on his face. Silently, the silverclaimer bent the bars enough for him and Alpine to climb through.

Within seconds, everyone was freed, standing around the hallway. Celia had latched herself onto Haru's arm, but the prince failed to notice her. "What's the plan?" he asked seriously, gazing at everyone.

"We should run!" squealed Celia, tears streaming down her face, "Save ourselves."

As Julia was about to go off on her, Alpine held a hand up. "Incorrect," he said softly, "Princess, if you would rather run than fight, be my guest. However, it's safe to assume that the rest of it shall be fighting for Lady Resha. As Dalmatian pointed out earlier, we are unarmed. That, however, can be solved fairly simple. The other Knights and I keep our weapons in the armory, and I believe Sir Musica placed Haru's new sword there as well. If we can get in there, then we begin to fight."

Haru nodded. "Let, and Julia, you two fight with your fists, so you can go ahead of us. Reina and Musica have their silver stuff, so you can go ahead too. And, Sieg, since you use magic, you might as well follow em'," he directed, sighing. "The six of us will try and break into the armory while you guys cause a bit of a distraction." Everyone nodded, watching him carefully. Everyone except his fiancé and future sister-in-law.

"Haru-chan," whined Celia, gripping his arm tightly, "just forget about her. You chose me, remember? Let's just get as far away from here as we can! Together."

As she was talking, the rest of them left, nodding to Haru as they did so. Even his knights left, bowing their heads as they did so. "Celia," Haru said softly, prying his arm loose, "I can't. Elie needs me. And, if Sieg is right and she really is Resha Valentine, then Lucia's probably gonna try to unleash the magic, and use it to destroy the world. I can't just walk away from that!"

The princess stared at him, her eyes narrowing. "It has nothing to do with you wanting to save the world," she said hotly, crossing her arms against his tattered dress, "You've always chosen Elie over me. Running off to see her as soon as you possibly could. You agreed to marry _me_, Haru! Me, not her!" she reminded him, stamping her foot against the ground. "So what if she's Resha Valentine? I bet she doesn't even have Etherion. No one can possibly control the Gods' power!"

Haru sighed, shaking his head. "Celia, you're right. Saving Elie has nothing to do with saving the world. I'm saving her because she's important to me," he said, grabbing her arms gently, "You have to understand. Elie means the world to me, and she's in danger. I _have_ to go save her."

Celia shook her head, sniffling. "But you love _me_!" she cried, tears beginning to fall down her eyes. Haru sighed again, closing his eyes. There was no easy way to tell her this. Not when he had spent the last six months believing that what she had just said was true. Slowly, he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly.

"I thought so too, Celia," he breathed in her ear gently. "I would never do anything to intentionally hurt you. You know that, right?" he asked, waiting patiently for her nod, "Please don't hold this against me. You can't just choose who you fall in love with."

The princess sighed against him, pulling away. "I know," she said, wiping her eyes and smiling up at him slightly, "That's what makes this so hard."

Haru inwardly sighed, comforting the princess gently as she cried. "Get yourself to safety, OK? You and Fumia both. While the others are causing a distraction, you two slip out of the castle and run down to the village. Go searching for a young girl named Nagisa, and someone else named Julius. Tell them Lucia has Elie, and to get up to the castle. Will you do that for me?" he asked, pulling away finally.

"Of course," said Celia immediately, smiling up at him. "Don't kill yourself up there, you hear?" she said softly, reaching up and kissing his cheek gently. Haru nodded, and the two took off towards the entrance together.

**x**

With difficulty, Elie looked up at her captor. He had taken her to some giant room in the castle, and had simply laid her on the floor. Of course, he had kicked, and cut her to the point where she was certain moving would be too painful to attempt – let alone running for her life. "It's a shame," said the man silkily, "that I had to beat you to this point. One such as yourself should be standing next to me, ready to await my orders."

The brunette closed her eyes, allowing her head to drop back onto the ground. "N-never," she gasped out, biting back a scream of pain. Lucia laughed cruelly, gently nudging her with his foot so that she was on her back.

"You play the part of the damsel in distress so well, Princess," he said, crouching down next to her, "Too bad your heroes have been locked away in the dungeon. That precious prophecy of yours is about to come true, Resha Valentine. And I, the Golden King, shall finally destroy this worthless world!" Elie grinned, shaking her head. Although her eyes were closed, she could feel her captors eyes on her, though she only began to laugh. Lucia watched her for a little bit before grabbing her by the hair and pulling her up. "You find your situation humorous?" he demanded, forcing her to look him in the eye.

Though she was wounded, and she was terrified, Elie couldn't help smirking. "You talk like…like H-Haru and the…others are just…going to wait for…death," she gasped out, her voice hoarse and weak. "Th-they'll come," Elie told him as firmly as she could, "just…wait. I have…I have faith in them."

Lucia's eyes widened in his anger and, before Elie could realize just how much danger that had put her in, the blonde threw her – literally – across the room. She hit the ground on her side, sliding against the floor until her back hit the wall. Unable to hold it in any longer, the brunette screamed in pain, clutching her arm. "Even if your idiotic friends manage to escape and can find me," roared the king in outrage, slowly walking over to her, "it will be too late. I am awaiting Haja to tell me the way to unseal Etherion, and once it has been done, they shall be at the mercy of the magic _you _cannot control, Resha Valentine!"

He began to laugh, but Elie wasn't listening to him anymore. "They…they'll come," she insisted softly, groaning in pain, "I…I know it."

"Can't accept the reality?" asked the king with a laugh, gazing down at her. "Soon, you shall be forced to witness the death of this surreal world, and the birth of the new one!" Elie didn't reply, too distracted by the amount of pain that was surging through her to question what he was talking about.

"My King," said someone from across the room. Elie opened her eyes a little bit, watching as a man that was the size of Yuma and Hardner combined stepped into the room. He had a large helmet on his head, and a small vile of something in his hand. "After extensive research," Haja continued, stopping about five feet away from the blonde, "I have reached the conclusion that this liquid will break the magic seal on Etherion."

Elie's eyes widened in fear and shock, but Lucia seemed to have been expecting this. "No less than Haja the Infinite," he muttered, holding out his hand as the man dropped the little vile into his hand. "Send a man down to the dungeons to inspect how our guests are going. I want them to witness the second when I gain control of Etherion!" Haja's eyes narrowed slightly, but he bowed deeply and left the room, leaving Lucia and Elie alone. "This is perfect," muttered the blonde, grabbing Elie and yanking her to her feet, "No one can save you now, Princess!"

The brunette shook her head, but she was too weak to resist his strong hand wrenching open her mouth. "I shall see you soon, Resha Valentine," the king whispered, pouring the contents down into her mouth and allowing her to drop once he was certain she had swallowed every last drop.

Immediately, Elie began to scream. Pain unlike any other was surging through her body, going through her bloodstream rather than down to her stomach like most other liquids. Heat filled her body, and she was dimly aware that she was shaking wildly on the floor. Above her, Lucia was laughing loudly, but the only thing Elie could full hear was her own heart, beating faster than it ever had before. Distantly, as if she was on the opposite side of a tunnel, Elie heard Lucia begin to walk away. "Only a matter of time now."

Another scream left Elie's mouth, but she wasn't paying attention to anything anymore. The pain was slowly subsiding, and the heat was overwhelming her conscious. "H-Haru…" she moaned once more before slowly drifting away from consciousness and into the bliss of sleep.

**x**

Slowly, Haru looked around the hall. As directed, Julia, Musica, Let, Reina, and Sieg had gone on ahead to cause a distraction. However, that had been at least three minutes ago, so the remaining ones weren't entirely sure if they should go or not. "If we do not act now," hissed Alpine from behind him, "we will miss the opportunity!"

"I haven't heard anything yet!" hissed Haru back, his eyes narrowing, "Sieg said we'd know the signal, and since none of us have heard anything yet, we –"

Before Haru had finished speaking, a loud bang was heard from far off to their left. It sounded a great deal like lightning had just struck in the castle, but Haru knew that it wasn't raining outside. People began to scream, though their voices and words were indistinguishable. "Now!" cried Haru, jumping out from his place. The other five followed him closely, and all six of them were in the armory in a flash. "Grab what you need," directed Haru, looking around, "And then we gotta go join the others."

His Knights nodded, wordlessly grabbing their weapons. Haru continued to look around – he didn't even know what his new sword _looked_ like! Finally, on a large shelf, the prince spotted a long, narrow sword he had never seen before. During his lessons, Shiba had taken him into the armory to inspect the weapons, to get a feel of different kinds so he could always be prepared in case his sword was gone. And, this sword, had never been seen before. With a slightly shaking hand, Haru reached forward and pulled the sleek sword off the shelf, holding it up. The hilt looked like two hands, but it was light enough to carry with one regardless. A gem was on the end of it, but the prince had no time to gaze at its; beauty. Silently, he slipped the sheath off and revealed a sword that about three-fourths as long as Shiba's Ten Commandments, with a small cross on the blade. "An indentation for Rave?"

Surprised, Haru jumped around and watched as Shiba and the other knights gazed down at his sword as well. "Rave?" repeated Haru in shock, pulling the sword out entirely and slashing the air next to him.

"You understand that the Ten Commandments can change into ten different forms, correct?" asked Shiba softly, gazing at the sword wondrously. "It draws its' power from the small cross indented into it. The cross is actually something I received from…well, there's no point in keeping it a secret anymore. Resha Valentine created a small stone called Rave when she was younger, without any supervision from her mentors. Because of it, her mother died, and the law was passed that no one be allowed to learn magic until the age of sixteen."

Haru stared at him, his eyes wide. "You were friends with Resha?" he asked, lowering the sword. Shiba nodded, but quickly shook his head.

"Now is not the time for stories," cut in Alpine, hitting his spear against the ground. "If Haru's sword requires this Rave to function, it is appropriate that you give it to him, Sir Shiba."

Now, everyone turned to Alpine. "But, the Ten Commandments can't function without Rave either," pointed out the prince, not wishing to take away his friends' gift from Resha. "It's fine. I'm sure this sword will work just fine without Rave."

Shiba sighed, stabbing the thick sword into the ground. "I can use Eisenmeteor without Rave," he reminded them all. "I have no problems with fighting without Rave," he added, a smirk coming to his face, "I'm good enough to kick ass without a power boost." The four other knights sighed, but Shiba just grinned wider. Wordlessly, the older man popped the tiny cross from its' indentation and wrapped his fist around it. "Prince Haru," he began.

"Make it ceremonious later!" snapped Clea, grabbing the stone from Shiba's hands and thrusting it to Haru. "When Haru gets crowned, you can do a whole big thing for it. Now, however, is _not_ the time!" Shiba and Haru chuckled, nodding. "Let's go."

Haru slipped the sheath onto his back, carefully putting his sword into it. "It needs a name, sir," mentioned Dalmatian as the six left the armory and headed towards the screams. Haru nodded, considering. "It's bad luck to use a nameless sword in battle, so you better hurry."

The prince nodded, seeing their first enemy. Immediately, he dashed to the front of the group and charged forward, unsheathing his sword in the process. As the prince was about to swing, he pushed the little Rave into the sword, ignoring the bright light that followed it. A smirk appeared on his face as he began to swing, a word forming in his head. The soldier gasped in surprise – he had seen Haru coming, but couldn't seem to wrap his head around it – attempting to put up his own sword to defend himself. However, Haru didn't stop, continuing his slash and, before either of them could fully register what had happened, the soldier was down on the ground, his sword broken in two. Behind him, the five knights stared, but he ignored them.

"Ravelt," he breathed, swinging the sword through the air lightly. "I've named it."

However, he didn't have much time to admire his new sword, as more soldiers began to surround them. "Prince!" cried Clea from behind, defending his right side, "Run on ahead. These men are not worth your time!" Haru nodded, frowning slightly.

"Next time I see you," Haru cried, dashing ahead, "you five better all be alive still!" The knights didn't reply, so Haru kept on running, dodging and avoiding any attacks that were directed towards him. "Where you are, Lucia?" he screamed, grabbing a soldier that was stupid enough to throw himself in the way and throwing him against the wall. "Come out and fight me, you bastard!"

"Unfortunately, King Lucia has no time for a petty child as yourself."

Haru turned around, scoffing. "Yeah? He must have forgotten that the two of us are the exact same age," he said, his eyes narrowing. "King Doryu, I don't wanna fight you. Just tell me where Lucia is, and I'll walk away."

The King's eyes narrowed and he drew out a long sword the color of ebony. "You do not wish to fight me?" he repeated in his slow voice, scoffing, "Then you shall be all the easier to kill!" That said, Doryu lunged himself at Haru, who had only just raised Ravelt in time to defend against him. "I will personally bring King Lucia your lifeless corpse, Glory!" Haru rolled his eyes, pushing back against Doryu's heavy sword.

"Not a chance," he muttered, jumping back and taking a stance. "Elie's waiting for me. I'm not gonna get defeated by anyone."

**(These next several bits will be happening at the same time, just for the record. They will be broken up a little 't' from hereon in.)**

"Jegan!" three of them screamed, their eyes wide. They had known that there was a traitor amongst their advisers, but to have it be the Duke was just too much to believe. Let jumped ahead the group, attempting to drop kick the traitor. However, Jegan was just as skilled with his hands as he was with his sword, and quickly parried it.

Immediately, his name was called, but Let ignored them. "The rest of you," he called, not taking his eyes off Jegan, "I shall defeat the traitor."

The others nodded, running past him. "Let," Julia said as she passed, her eyes worried, "be careful." The king nodded, allowing himself one last glance before returning to Jegan. The blonde began to shout instructions onto the others with her, taking charge as only she could.

"You don't seem horribly surprised to see me here, King," said the man in front of him. His eyes were just as calm as they always were, with long blonde hair falling around his eyes in poker-straight locks. Let didn't reply except to take a stance, watching the man carefully. "You intend to fight me? You cannot defeat me, brother."

Let snarled, charging at the man and knocking him onto his back. "You are no brother of mine," spat the king, jumping off of him and standing back where he was. "Get up and fight me, Jegan," he commanded, taking his stance once more, "And you shall face the wrath of a king who's country is in jeopardy."

**t**

The others ran, not really paying attention to amount of soldiers that were coming at them. "Will King Let be alright without assistance?" called Sieg after a bit, shooting a man with a fireball. Julia and Musica exchanged a look before returning back to battle.

"I'd feel a lot better about it if he had an army behind him," Musica replied honestly, "but there ain't no one stronger than Let when it comes to something he cares about. He'll be fine."

Sieg nodded, holding out his arm to stop them all. "I want the three of you to go left," he directed, his eyes narrowed. "Haja the Infinite is ahead," explained the sorcerer somberly, "and it would not be wise for any of you to face him."

Julia scoffed. "But it's OK for you to go against him?" she retorted, placing her hands on her hips. The soldiers around them had been defeated, but they all knew that it was just a matter of time before another round came. "We're sticking together," she insisted, her brown eyes narrowing. Sieg sighed, turning to face her fully.

"Pardon my rudeness," he said, his manners always present, "But if you do not leave now, I will have no other choice than to use force. I am not requesting the four of us split up because I've deemed you all useless in rescuing Lady Resha. Far from, otherwise I would have gone ahead myself. The reason I want you all to go around is because King Haja is the second strongest sorcerer in the entire world. The only way to defeat him is by using magic, and while two of you possess the ability, we have neither the time nor the material to train you enough to be useful. I, however, have devoted my entire life to the study of magic, and will presumably be the only opponent with a standing chance against the King."

The other three looked at each other. "Fine," said Julia reluctantly, turning to leave, "Don't you die. We're gonna need you for the others, and it looks like Elie really cares about you."

Sieg nodded, not watching as the other three began to run to the left, too focused on the looming figure in front of him. "That was not wise," boomed the figure, "Sending away those that can help. You always have been a fool, Sieg Hart."

"If I'm the fool for facing an enemy alone," said Sieg hotly, "why have you brought no reinforcements?"

Haja scoffed. "These idiotic foot soldiers are not worth the time of ones as yourself," he explained, his eyes narrowing, "Lucia has ordered the best come forth to fight, and so we shall proof victorious."

Sieg smirked. "Confidence," he said, taking a stance, "was always the greatest downfall of those of evil. You shall quickly learn, King Haja, what an Eliean Knight is capable of, and none of you shall ever lay a hand on Lady Resha again."

"We shall see about that, Sieg Hart."

**t**

"Reina, look out!"

The green haired queen didn't even have time to look before Musica threw himself at her, knocking the woman out of the way of a spear falling. "Well, well, well. Only three intruders left."

Musica jumped off Reina, holding out a hand to help her up. "Intruders? Dude, this is Haru's castle!" pointed out the prince, clenching his fists, "Besides, who the hell are you?"

The person – well, if you could call it that – was larger than all three of them combined, with two large horns sticking out of his head from around a sheet of long hair. His had a large under bite chin with several fangs poking out here and there. "I am Sir Ogre! You are Prince Musica of Makai and Queen Reina of Elnadia, correct?" he said, eyeing Reina with a lustful look in his large eyes, "No matter. I shall destroy you where you stand!"

The two silverclaimer's exchanged a look, scoffing. "Julia," said Reina in that innocent way she had a way of adapting when she was about to become very serious, "Go on ahead. Musica and I can handle this ugly thing."

The blonde stared at them for a moment, nodding. "I'll see ya' both later!" she called, running past Ogre and onwards. The demon simply allowed to walk past, too focused on the two of in front of him.

"You two are silverclaimer's, are you not?"

Musica and Reina exchanged another look, shrugging. "What's it matter to you, ugly?" he asked hotly, gripping the silver skull around his neck. Reina stayed silent, keeping a careful watch on their enemy.

Ogre grinned widely, laughing. "Send an army of silverclaimer's at me!" roared the demon, taking a stance. "I'll defeat them all."  
"He's a goldclaimer!"

Musica didn't even have time to ask her what on earth that was – too busy dodging the series of golden swords that were flying at him. "Goldclaimer, eh?" he said, landing on one knee a ways away, "You ready, Reina?"

The queen grinned, picking herself off the ground as well. "Let's go."

**t**

Julia had to admit, running by herself through a castle, searching for one of the generals to fight was rather nerve-wracking. The others had simply run into their opponent, and she was on the _hunt_ for them? Not cool.

"Is the little girl lost?"

Immediately, Julia whipped around, her heart racing. The man was dressed simply, only a pair of black trousers visible. "That statement is completely wrong, creep," she said hotly, her eyes narrowing. "Ain't ever seen you before. Must be from Elie Village," commented the queen, placing her hands on her hips.

The man didn't respond. "I am the strongest under Hardner, second only to Lady Lunar," he said, his voice sending trails down Julia's back. "If I could have," continued the general, his eyes suddenly gaining a new sadistic gleam to them, "I would have gladly kidnapped Lady Resha before she had a chance to disappear. I was not ignorant of the plans, it could have been done. Unfortunately, by the time Hardner got the acceptance from Sir Lucia, she had left the country."

"You'd jeopardize the entire world…gladly?" repeated Julia with wide eyes. The man's eyes only glistened even more, and he spread his arms out wide.

"I have nothing to lose, Queen! What does it matter to me if my actions bring about the end of the world? If King Lucia desires Lady Resha, then I would be more than happy to hang deliver the idiotic wench to his hands!" cried the man, laughing wildly. Julia stared at him for a little bit, feeling her temper beginning to rise, and in a second, she had jumped forward, hitting the man squarely on the chest and knocking him onto the ground.

From where she was standing, the queen held up a fist. "Don't you ever talk about Elie like that again," she warned, her eyes wide, "If you do, I'll kill you." The man's eyes were wide in shock, but he slowly picked himself up, taking a stance. Julia scoffed, taking her own stance. "This is for you, Elie."

~x~

Author's Note: Yes, lots of little catch phrases and bits ending in someone saying something dramatic. But, we've got the stage set for what's going on! Mostly, anyways. Also, be warned – I don't have the ability to write multiple fight scenes. So, unfortunately, the only fight scene you're going to get the entirety of will be the ones Haru fights.

Also, sorrrrrry for the delay! I've been busy, and this chapter ended up being harder to write than I thought. (: Next chapter will be up as soon as I can!


	18. Chapter 17: Fighting and Childhood

Upside Down

~x~

Author's Note: As I'm sure you can imagine, this is going to be a very important chapter. I also want you all to know that the fights will NOT be identical to the ones in the manga. Why? Because I feel like making them different. xD  
Also, the second bit in this chapter was inspired purely by gangsta, in her review. :3 Thanks a lot for the inspiration!

~x~

**Chapter Seventeen: Fighting and Childhood  
**

Quickly, Haru flung himself to the right, dodging an attack from Doryu. The King had taken several swings at him, but the prince had opted to avoiding the attacks rather than blocking them, for now. "Fight me like a man!" screamed Doryu, beginning to get frustrated at his opponent. Haru smirked – his plan was working.

Rather than go all out on the king, the blonde had decided to use a different tactic; frustrate the man into the point where he would cease to pay attention to anything but defeating Haru. While that may backfire – it would certainly increase Doryu's bloodlust – the prince was betting that his concentration would falter, making him a much easier target. "See, I _could_," Haru said lightly, jumping in the air to avoid another attack, "But, this is much funner."

Doryu cried out in irritation, swinging to Haru's right. Seeing no other option, the prince raised Ravelt and caught the blow with his own blade, sliding to the left slightly. "And so the sword has been raised," Doryu said maliciously. Haru frowned, parrying the attack and taking his own swing at Doryu's left side. As the prince had just done, Doryu blocked it, laughing. "You cannot defeat me, Haru Glory!" Haru's eyes narrowed, and he charged forward again, going to spear Doryu.

However, the king was too fast for him and, instead of being speared, shoved his sword through Haru's side. Immediately, the prince cried out in pain – he had suffered injuries during training, but nothing like this. The blade had cut open his side but had not been lodged inside of him. Blood began to pour from his wound, as well from his mouth, but the prince wasn't about to let a little cut stop him. Much to Doryu's surprise, he swung Ravelt around and slashed down against his chest. A bloodcurdling scream erupted from Doryu's mouth, and the king fell backwards.

"That's for threatening Elie," gasped Haru, clutching his wound with his free hand. He watched with satisfaction as the king's eyes rolled back into his skull, and his sword dropped to the ground. However, no 'clang' followed his sword, much to the confusion of the prince. Just as he was about to lean in towards the man, he disappeared in a puff of black smoke.

"You fell for it, you fool!" Doryu screamed suddenly, laughing loudly. Before Haru could react, he felt a cool slash of metal against his chest. The coolness only last for a second, though, and soon it was replaced by a wildfire in his body that began spreading up through his chest and going all the way down to his toes. Haru screamed, numbly aware that he had fallen onto the ground. Pain unlike anything else he had ever felt was raging through his body, causing Haru to drop his sword and clench his eyes closed. "I need not attack any longer. You shall be dead soon."

The prince cried out again, one hand clutching the torn parts of his shirt together, as if that might stop the bleeding. "I…I c-can't…" he gasped out, opening his eyes and glaring at Doryu's retreating figure. He had to get up. Elie was waiting for him!

With strength that he didn't realize he had, the blonde pushed himself back onto his feet, shaking horribly. Weakly, he grabbed his sword and gripped it tightly, his vision blurry. It felt like fire was raging through his veins, and the prince dimly registered that he had been poisoned somehow. Anger and desperation welled into him, and he pulled off his shirt, revealing a foot long gash going down his chest as he tied his hand to the hilt of his sword – anything to keep it in his shaking fingers. "Doryu!" Haru screamed, charging forward suddenly.

The king turned around, his eyes wide. Haru was screaming loudly, and before Doryu had a chance to pull out his sword, the prince brought Ravelt down against the man's chest. Again, he screamed, but this time, it sounded more like Haru's own scream of agony. Doryu fell to the ground with a sickening thud, his sword clattering against the stone floor. Haru watched in numb confusion as the man began to turn into smoke, leaving behind nothing but his sword as proof that he had ever existed.

"Prince Haru!" someone cried as he fell onto his side, clutching his chest again. "Shit! Julius, go fetch Dalmatian – he'll have the antidote!" the person screamed, soft hands prying Haru's hands off his chest to examine it. "Haru, can you hear me?"

The blonde opened his eyes weakly, finding a young girl gazing over him. She had long pink hair pulled into two separate braids, and a mole under one eye. Despite never having seen her up close, Haru recognized her as Nagisa, that girl that had appeared at the lake after they had gone ice-skating. "El…lie…" he gasped out, shaking his head.

He had to go. Now. If Sieg was right, and Lucia had really found a way to control Etherion using Elie, he didn't have the time to lay here dying. His body began to move, heading up, ignoring the vast amounts of pain he was feeling. "Prince, I understand your desire to rescue Lady Resha, but you've been badly poisoned! Please, lay back down while we wait for Dalmatian and Julius!" she commanded, grabbing his shoulders in a grasp firmer than he would have expected and pushed him back down.

"N-no…!" gasped out the prince, shaking his head again. He was feeling lightheaded – perhaps too much blood loss? "I…I have to…go."

Nagisa frowned. "I know," she said, "But you have to get the antidote before you go anywhere." That said, she took out a roll of bandages from her pocket and began to wrap up his wounds. "Jesus, I wouldn't have expected Doryu to vanish like that. Must be a demon thing or something." Haru didn't even bother to question what she was babbling about, too focused on the surging fire in his veins.

_I'm going to die here. I'm going to die, and then the kingdom will be turmoil because Lucia will have won. Everyone…I'm sorry. I can't fight off the poison…I'm so sorry everyone. I failed you all. I failed, and now I'm going to die because I wasn't smart enough to realize Doryu had poisoned me. Elie…beautiful, beautiful Elie. I'm sorry that I was too stupid to realize how I felt about you. Can you ever forgive me?_

_Cattleya…is this how you and Mom felt? When you guys were sick. I'll see you again soon, I think. We'll be together again…the three of us. And this time…maybe Dad will be with us, just like Mom always wanted. Then, I can apologize to you all for being such a horrible son._

_That'd be nice. We'd be a real family…this…time…_

**BEGIN DREAM-SEQUENCE/FLASHBACK**

"_How come Mom never talks about Dad?"  
Cattleya looked up from her work, caught slightly off guard by her brother. Haru was sitting on a crate, watching his older sister carefully. "It makes her sad," she finally answered, going back to work. "I remember seeing him a couple times, when I was real little. Last time he came around was when you were just a baby. You look like him."_

_Haru scoffed, crossing his arms against his chest. "What kind of Dad is he if he's not even gonna come back and see us? And he's making Mommy sad all the time! I don't wanna meet him!" he cried, kicking a stone near his foot._

_"He hasn't come back to see us because he's been gone for the past nine years!" interjected Cattleya hotly. "He'll come back. He promised me he would."_

_Haru rolled his eyes again, pouting slightly. "Yeah? Well, I don't wanna meet him. I bet he's real mean!" he said, sticking his tongue out at his sister. The older one didn't bother responding, finishing up her work and wiping her hands on the front of her dress. As she stood up, she began to cough violently, dropping the pail that she picked up. The pout slipped off Haru's face quickly as he watched his older sister cough, shaking with the force of her shakes. "Cattleya?"_

_The older one shook her head, grinning up at him once the coughs had passed. "I'm fine," she said happily, looking a little flushed. "Come on, time for dinner." Haru nodded, following his sister closely as they rushed back up to the little house._

_As always, their mother had prepared a wonderful smelling supper for them, standing with her back to them. "Wash up before you even both sitting down," she directed without turning around, her long black hair pulled back into a ponytail as she cooked. Cattleya placed the pail, now filled with water from their well, by her mothers' feet, and the two children ran towards the washroom, fighting over the tub of clean water._

_Once they were finished, the three sat down for dinner, quickly digging in. Halfway through the meal, Cattleya began to cough again, this time worse than the first. Haru didn't watch this time, too busy shoveling food into his mouth. But, their mother had gotten up and was rubbing the teenagers' back as she coughed, looking worried. "Cattleya, how long have these coughs been going on?" she asked worriedly, placing another hand on her daughters' head._

_"Since yesterday," replied Cattleya honestly, seeing no more reason to hide it. "I thought it would go away, but it's only gotten worse. Mommy," she added in a soft whine, "I'm cold."_

_Sakura's eyes widened, and she pressed her palm against her forehead again, "But, honey, you're burning up," she said weakly, looking stricken. Haru glanced up in surprise for the first time, watching as his mother ushered his sister up. Cattleya stood for maybe a second on her own until, without warning, collapsed onto the floor. Immediately, the other cried out in shock. Haru got to his feet in worry, and Sakura scooped her thirteen year old into her arms. "Haru, stay there. You just stay here and finish eating, OK? I'll be right back. Cattleya's got a bit of a cold, so she needs rest."_

_Haru nodded, watching as his sister disappeared into their shared bedroom. Like she said, his mother was back out in a flash, clearing the table. "How sick is Cattleya?" asked Haru innocently, pushing his plate away from him. "Gemma said people all over the village were sick, and it all started with coughing."_

_"Cattleya's fine, honey," promised Sakura airily, smiling. "I think it's time for you to go to bed, though. Tomorrow, everything will be back to normal." Haru nodded, grinning up at his mother once more before heading into their bedroom and slipping under the sheets next to Cattleya, falling asleep peacefully in just a matter of minutes._

_In the morning, however, he was roughly awakened by his mothers' hand. "Wake up, darling," she whispered softly to him, her voice worried and urgent. Haru opened his eyes slowly, yawning. Once she saw he was awake, Sakura grabbed the boys' wrist and dragged him out of bed. "You're going to stay with Gemma for a couple days, alright?"_

_"Huh?" asked Haru sleepily, following his mother without resistance. Sakura released him once they were outside, handing Gemma a small bag. "How come?"_

_"Because Cattleya's sick, and I don't want you catching it," explained Sakura hastily, her eyes darting back to the house as she spoke. She was already halfway turned to go back in. "Run along, dear. I'll see you in a little bit."_

_Gemma gently took Haru's hand and began to lead him away. "I thought Cattleya was gonna be fine?" called the boy, watching as his mother disappeared into the house without an answer. "Mom said she was fine. What happened?" he asked Gemma, turning his large purple eyes on him. Gemma sighed, looking more worried than Haru could ever remember seeing him._

_"Remember when I last saw you, and I told you all about how people in the village were getting real sick?" he asked softly, gently squeezing his almost-nephew's hand. Haru nodded, not fully understanding yet. "Cattleya must have caught the illness when you guys came down to the village to sell your produce. Your mom didn't want you to worry last night, that's why she told you that she was fine. When she got up, however, Cattleya was still burning up, so she knew that she had to get you out of there before you caught it too."_

_Haru stared at the man, his eyes still wide. "Cattleya's sick?" he repeated numbly, understanding washing through him. "But…but, you said that people were dying 'cause of this!" he cried, shaking his head. "Cattleya can't die!"_

_The older man stopped, kneeling down and placing his hands on Haru's shoulders. "Listen, boy," he said seriously, shaking slightly, "Cattleya will be fine. Your Mom isn't going to let either of you two die, you hear me? In a couple days, they'll come back down and then everything will get back to normal, OK?"_

_The blonde nodded shakily – what else could he have done? Gemma nodded as well in satisfaction, standing back up and leading the way down to the village in silence. "Don't you worry about a thing, kiddo," Gemma said as the two turned into his tavern, "Cattleya'll be just fine. Your Mom will set her right."_

_Haru said nothing, merely nodding in fear._

_**s**_

_The next several weeks passed in a blur for young Haru. He helped Gemma clean up around his tavern, he played with some of the neighborhood children, and he went about his day normally. However, he was growing more and more worried as the days went on – so many people were dying because of this illness. His best friend, Shige, had already lost his Aunt and cousin to it._

_Thankfully, after Haru had been there for about two weeks, he was gently awaken by a pair of rough, yet soft, hands. "Haru, honey," whispered a soft voice, running her hands through his hair. Haru groaned sleepily, opening his eyes slowly. "Good morning, darling."_

_"Mom!" cried the child, jumping out of bed and embracing his mother. Sakura laughed, hugging him back tightly. "Cattleya, is she –"_

_"Yes, Cattleya's fine. She's downstairs talking to Gemma," Sakura explained, kissing his forehead. "I missed you so much, Haru. Cattleya's excited to see you, too," she explained, smiling at her son tiredly. Haru grinned back up at her, hugging her once more before tearing himself away and taking the steps two at a time, his heart racing._

_There, maybe twenty feet away from him, stood his older sister. She looked thinner than she had two weeks ago, her skin pale. Every move she made seemed to exhaust her; every so often, she'd lean her palm against her cheek, as if keeping her head up was too tiring for her neck. "Cattleya," said Haru softly, smiling widely. Immediately, Cattleya looked up at him, and the boy was thrilled to see that her walnut shaped brown eyes were as bright as ever – if not a little tired looking. "Cattleya!"_

_Cattleya jumped from her chair, but only took a few steps towards him. Haru, however, ran to her, throwing his arms around her tightly. "Cool it, big guy," said Gemma from behind them, sounding pleased, "Your sister just got over a serious illness." Haru ignored him, tears springing to his eyes._

_"You didn't think I'd let that stupid thing kill me, did you?" asked Cattleya, sounding both tired and amused at the same time. Haru laughed, wiping his eyes. "You did, didn't you? Come on, there's no way I'm gonna leave you and Mom like that. Besides, you're completely hopeless without me to help you out around the farm."_

_Haru laughed, ignoring the insult in there. "None of the crops or anything died while Mom was taking care of ya', right?" he asked, the thought of coming home to dead livestock just not entering his head. He had been more concerned with coming home to a dead Cattleya to worry much about the other things on the farm. Before Cattleya could answer, their mother appeared behind them, laying her hands over Haru's shoulders._

_"Thank you for looking after Haru, Gemma," she said kindly, a small bag over her shoulder, "But, if you don't mind, I want to take my son back home with me."_

_Gemma simply nodded, gesturing to the door. "Of course. I didn't want him around much longer anyways," he said, laughing loudly. At the sound of his laugh, all three Glory's burst out into their own laughter – he hadn't laughed once during the two weeks Haru had stayed with him. "Come down for a drink next time you guys are in town, OK?" he called as they left, waving._

_Haru and Cattleya chimed out a thank you, running ahead of their mother to race each other home. As they ran, both of them heard violent coughing. A chord of worry sounded through Haru's chest, but he ignored it – people were coughing all over the place nowadays. "What was it like, being sick for all that time?" asked Haru as the two reached the path that led to their farm. "Shige was tellin' me about how his cousin, Cindy – you remember her, don't ya'? – had all these crazy dreams while she was sleepin', and how she kept on tryin' to get up and walk around, 'cause she thought she was all better. That's what killed her, he said, 'cause she pushed herself too far or something."_

_Cattleya didn't interrupt him, simply allowing her brother to talk. "I had some weird dreams, yeah," she said once he had stopped talking, "But I never wanted to get out of bed. Maybe my case wasn't as bad as Cindy's."_

_"It's too bad she died, isn't it?" Haru said distantly, kicking at a small rock. "I'm just glad you and Mom are alright!"_

_The teenager grinned down at him, the smile seeming out of place on her tired face. "Of course we are."_

_**s**_

"_Cattleya?"_

_"Not now, Haru! Go play!" commanded his sister, her back to him. He had been outside playing, but a sudden crash had called him back inside. Now, he wasn't sure if he should have done that – lying on the floor, sprawled out like she had just been dropped there, was his mother. "I said go!"_

_The boy didn't move from where he was, watching as his mother's face flushed. "Is Mom sick?" he asked calmly, feeling his head swim. Cattleya didn't answer him, kneeling down next to their mother. "Oh. Want help?" Haru asked pleasantly, stepping forward and going around. His mother's eyes were closed, and she seemed to be breathing heavily, like she was in pain. Without directions, the blonde slipped a hand under her back and lifted her up, taking her left hand and slinging it over his shoulders. "Take her other side," he directed, lifting her up halfway. Her right side was limp, and Haru didn't know which one he'd rather see – his mother writhing in pain, or his mother like a limp noodle._

_Cattleya lifted up her other side, and the two carefully dragged her into the bedroom, lifting her on the bed. "Get back to work," directed Cattleya, pushing her brother out of the bedroom, "I'll take care of her. But, I'm gonna need your help, so don't go down and tell Gemma."_

_Haru nodded. "What do you want me to do?" he asked. There was no complaining, no whining that he didn't want to help. "I can do all the farm work. That way you can take care of Mom."_

_"You'd do that?" she asked softly, halfway turned to go back to her mother's side. Haru nodded seriously, turning to leave. "Just leave all the cooking and stuff to me. Mom'll be up and better before you even know it!"_

_The next several days passed without incident. Haru worked around the clock, sacrificing every spare second he had to working on the farm. The only time either of the children saw one another was when she was taking fresh water from Haru, or she was giving him food. It was a lonely life, but Haru remained optimistic that it wouldn't last too much longer – Sakura had to get better soon. Cattleya would make everything right._

_"Haru!" Cattleya called from the bedroom one evening, "Haru, can you fetch me more water? Mom's burning up again." Haru, who was sitting at the table, sighed in annoyance. He was sore from the day's work, and all he wanted to do was just sit and rest – he wasn't even allowed to sleep his bed, just a bedroll Cattleya had found for him. Taking his sweet time, the boy slowly got up and went to the well, dipping the bucket into the water slowly, pulling it back up even slower. By the time he had dragged it back into the house, Cattleya was standing in the doorway, looking outraged._

_The blonde handed her the bucket lazily, plopping down in the chair. "I'm tired," he whined, rubbing his sore arms._

_Cattleya set the bucket down, leaning down closer to him. "Our mother is dying in there," she whispered, "and you're complaining about being tired? You're just lucky you haven't caught what I had!"_

_The teenager was about to say more, but was interrupted by a coughing attack so violent, she had to sit down. Immediately, Haru's weariness wore away, and he stood up, reaching for her. "C-Cattleya?" he asked shakily, his eyes growing wide. His sister batted away his hand, closing her eyes._

_"It's fine. I'm fine," she said weakly, standing back up. "I'm just weak because of how much work I've been doing."_

_Haru stared at her, suddenly realizing his older sister was wearing her thicker clothing, despite it being the beginnings of summer. "It's not cold out," he said slowly, "But, you're wearing all these thick clothing, like you're cold. And you're coughing again."_

_Cattleya shook her head, pausing to cough again. "I told you, it's nothing. I'm fine," she denied again, turning to leave. However, after the first step, she stopped, leaning against the wall, one hand holding her head. Haru watched in silent horror as her grip slipped, and she collapsed onto the ground, reacting only when he realized her face was flushing brightly._

_"No! No, Cattleya, you can't!" cried the blonde, lifting his sister up by her underarms, trying to force her to stand. "C-come on, Cattleya. If you get sick, then who's gonna take care of Mom?" he asked desperately, holding his breath for an answer. After several seconds, he realized that, if she could, she would have answered by no. So, with a soft chant of 'God no, God no,' he dragged her back into the bedroom, carefully setting her down on the bed next to his mother._

_He hadn't had a chance to see her since he walked in on her collapse, but it was obvious she hadn't been getting any better. She looked both burning up and freezing cold, with dark circles around her sunken eyes. Beads of sweat and water decorated what could be seen of her face, and Haru immediately, grabbed the bucket and placed a cool washcloth on her head. "Gale…is that you?" she muttered, her brown eyes opening a crack, gazing down at Haru lovingly, "Oh, Gale, I knew you'd come back for us. Gemma said I was crazy…he said you'd marry that woman, and never see us again. But, but, I told him. I told him, I said to him, 'Gale wouldn't do that'. And I was right!"_

_Haru nodded, not bothering to question what she was talking about. He left her side to give Cattleya a washcloth as well, gently tucking her in. "Cattleya, Mom? I dunno if you can hear me, but I'm not gonna let you guys die. OK? You're gonna get better. I promise," he muttered, kissing his sister's cheek and going to get the soup Cattleya had made for their mother. Cattleya didn't reply, clearly too asleep to bother answering._

_Clumsily, the blonde tried to ladle soup into his family's mouths, but he wasn't used to feeding anything buy himself, and not with a ladle, so he winded up spilling more soup on the bed covers than into their mouths. However, Cattleya had eaten already – or so she said – so he wasn't truly worried. However, his mother hadn't eaten yet, so he continued until he was satisfied with the amount she had consumed._

_For the next week, the only times Haru left that bedroom were to prepare a meal, or to go to the bathroom. He slept for an hour, against the wall, before waking up again to ensure his family had everything they needed. He wanted nothing more than to go get Gemma, but he didn't want to trouble the bartender, or take him away from his work, or even leave the room, so the family friend was blissfully unaware of the Glory's situation. The only consolation Haru had about the entire situation was that he seemed to be completely unaffected by whatever was raging through his mother and sister's system. He spent almost every minute with them, for as often as Cattleya had, but he never once felt the urge to cough, or felt cold._

_After Sakura had been sick for exactly two weeks, Haru awoke to a room that was deathly silent. He didn't need to question it – something had changed. The atmosphere was suddenly colder, less welcome than it already was. Nervously, he stood back up, his limbs screaming out for more sleep. On the bed lay his mother and sister, only there was a difference to them – Cattleya still looked flushed and feverish, but Sakura seemed to be less red. Quickly, Haru appeared at her side, grabbing her hand._

_"M-Mom?" he whispered, watching with relief as her eyes fluttered open slightly. "Mom, are you feeling any better? You don't feel so feverish anymore."_

_The woman simply stared at him, her eyes looking glassy and distant. "He…loved you," she gasped out, a smile touching on her lips, "He loved you…so, so much. Don't you…forget that." Haru nodded, gripping her hand tightly. "I…love you…too. One day…you'll be…just like him. I'm so proud of you, Haru."_

_The blonde nodded again, tears beginning to form in his eyes. "Mom, you can tell me all this when I'm older! When you're all better and laughing and smiling and in the kitchen talking about your childhood and stuff!" he cried, laughing shakily._

_"Haru…" she breathed, her eyes beginning to close, "Take…care…of…Cattleya…for me."_

_Haru shook his head, tears falling from his eyes now. "No! No, Mommy!" he screamed, watching in horror as his mother's eyes closed, and her hand went limp. Immediately, he released her hand and placed them both on her chest, trying to find the spot right over her right breast that would give him the answer he needed. The boy held his breath, feeling a very tiny, very faint shaking under his trembling fingers. Tears were cascading down his eyes, and, without warning, that faint heartbeat switched to a frantic pulse, beating heavily under Haru's hands and in his ears. Relief flooded through the boy for a second before realizing something – that was _his_ heartbeat._

_"No!" he cried again, shaking his head to get rid of the beating of his own heart in his ears. There was nothing under his small fingers anymore; just his frantic, uneven pulse. His mother looked peaceful in the first time in two weeks; her eyes closed and her mouth slightly slack. Haru shook his head wildly, refusing to believe what had just happened. "I'm gonna go get Gemma, OK?" he said frantically, pulling away from his mother and going to Cattleya's side, gently nudging her awake. "Cattleya?" he asked as her eyes opened, wiping his eyes, "Cattleya, I'm gonna go get Gemma. I can't do this on my own."_

_The teenager gazed at him for so long, Haru wasn't sure if she understood him or not. However, after a few minutes, she nodded slowly. "Mom's…dead. Isn't she?" she croaked, sounding weak. Haru stared at her, not sure if he wanted to lie about it or not. However, his older sister stared into his tearstained eyes and knew without his answer regardless – they were orphans. Tears began to roll from her eyes, but she nodded. "Go get…Gemma."_

_Haru nodded, kissing her cheek once before taking off, running as fast as his legs could take him. Doing all that farm work has strengthened the ten year old in ways he hadn't even stopped to consider, but Haru still took a full five minutes before he reached Gemma's bar. "Gemma! Gemma," he panted, banging on the door. Several people had stopped to stare at him, but Haru ignored them; he needed Gemma – now!_

_"Oh, hey, your Sakura's kid!" someone said, placing a hand on his shoulder. Haru felt his heart shatter at his mother's name, but turned to him and nodded. "Gemma's not here. He left this little village about four days ago. He's got family in another village about a day's travel from here that got sick." Haru stared at the man with a gaping mouth, aware that his tears were flowing again. "You best get on home before you catch it too. Sakura and Cattleya need a strong man like you to help out around that farm."_

_Numbed, Haru nodded, turning and beginning to walk away. Gemma was gone. He'd have to move Sakura by himself, bury her by himself. The boy cried out slightly, beginning to run back up to his farm, taking another precious five minutes just to reach them._

_Without stopping for water, Haru burst into the room. Sakura was still ghostly white, but Cattleya was still as flushed as she had been, sleeping again. Relief spread through him – he wasn't sure what he would have done if he had come back to find Cattleya dead as well. Taking a deep breath, Haru went to his mother and pushed aside the covers, positioning her arm across his shoulders and dragging her out of bed. She weighed less than she had when he and Cattleya had moved her into the bedroom, but she still weighed too much for the boy to carry her properly. Instead, he simply supported what he could, and allowed the rest to drag across the floor. Gently, he laid her down outside next to the house, stopping for a second to catch his breath. All the while, Haru refused to look at her, too afraid of what he'd see._

_"Har…ru…"_

_Haru's head snapped back up, completely alert. Without waiting for a second call, he rushed back to the bedroom, appearing next to Cattleya. "Yeah?" he asked softly, breathing heavily._

_She was awake now, her eyes half open. "Where's…Gemma?" she moaned, her breath louder than her words. Ashamed, Haru looked down, shaking his head slightly. "O-oh," gasped his sister, her eyes closing._

_"Cattleya, listen," he said frantically, nudging her gently to reopen her eyes, "I'm gonna go bury Mom. I'll be right outside our window, so you can just call me if you need me, OK?" Cattleya nodded, drifting off into sleep once more. Haru leaned down and placed a fresh washcloth on her forehead before leaving her once again to grab a shovel._

_**s**_

"_H-Haru," groaned Cattleya, reaching for him. It had been a week or so since the death of their mother, and Haru had been doing everything possible to make sure Cattleya was going to stay alive. "Haru, I wanna see…Dad."_

_Haru frowned, both at her statement and the sudden absence of color in her cheeks. "If I try to find him, you'll be all alone," he muttered, grabbing her outstretched hand tightly in his. The past two weeks had made Cattleya tinier than he was, her skin stretching against the bones dangerously. "After you're all better. Me and you will go find him, OK?"_

_She shook her head, her breath soft for the first time in weeks. "No, I meant…I wanna see…Dad and…Mom. Together," she breathed quietly._

_"Mom's dead," Haru replied in a quivering voice. Cattleya smiled, her eyes looking glassy. Haru's own eyes widened, and he shook his head frantically, tears beginning to form. "No, Cattleya. Cattleya, listen to me. I wanna see Mom too, but Mom wouldn't want us to just give up because she's gone! She'd want us to live on, for her!"_

_The teenager laughed, shaking her head. "I don't…care," she said, her eyes closing. "Thanks, Haru."_

_Wordlessly, the teenager's eyes closed, and without having to check, Haru knew his older sister had died. Tears began to cascade down his cheeks and he fell to the floor, still gripping his sister's limp hand. A scream erupted from his mouth, but he ignored it, trying to fight past the vast amounts of pain that he was feeling._

_His mom, dead. His sister, dead. His father, absent. He was all alone in the world, and he was only ten. "Why couldn't I have gotten sick instead?" he cried, whacking his fist on the ground. "How come they had to die and leave me behind! It isn't fair!" Anger suddenly welled up into him, and he grabbed the nearest chair, throwing it against the wall and watching in satisfaction as it broke. "Mom...Cattleya," he said, sniffling, "I'm gonna live enough for all three of us! And when my no good father comes back around to visit us, I'm gonna show your graves and I'm gonna make sure he feels every bit as bad as he should! I promise!"_

**END DREAM-SEQUENCE/FLASHBACK**

"I think we got it."

"You sure? He was out for a long time."

"See the beautiful flush to his cheeks? Only the living have that."

"He's all bandaged up, too, so the bleedings stopped."

"Thank you for coming to get me, Sir Julius. Had you not, Prince Haru would have surely died."

"The honor is all mine, Sir Dalmatian."

"Hey, I think he's waking up!"

Haru groaned, twitching his head slightly. Hadn't he died? What was going on? "Wha…what happened?" he asked, one hand covering his eyes. At the motion, pain shot through his chest, causing him to groan.

"Prince Haru," said the first voice. Haru recognized it dimly as a female's, maybe younger than he was. With some difficulty, he opened his eyes and found himself staring up at three very different people – there was the girl with pink hair, Dalmatian, and a man that was beautiful in a way Haru hadn't thought possible for men. "Thank God you're alright. You've been out for about ten minutes."

The prince groaned again, sitting up. Everything was coming back to him – Lucia had Elie, and Haru had gone to save her. He ended up fighting King Doryu, but the cheater cut open his chest. But, in a burst of energy, Haru had slashed him back, defeating him. "I have to go," he said, grabbing Ravelt and standing. Pain shot through him, but he refused to admit it.

"Wait!" cried Dalmatian, standing with him. Haru opened his mouth to tell him he was fine, but the knight simply thrust a small bottle of golden liquid into his hand. "Drink this. It'll heal you, and restore your strength."

The blonde took the bottle gratefully, swallowing it one gulp. It tasted sweeter than anything Haru had ever tasted, but with a warmth that spread through his body quickly. "Awesome! This stuff is great!" he cried, grinning at them. The three flashed a grin at him for a second before pushing him forward. He nodded, handing Dalmatian the bottle back and beginning his run once more.

_Elie…I'm coming!_

~x~

Author's Note: Yay for backstories! And life! And another cliff hanger! Mwuhahaha. I'm evil, aren't I? x3

**NEXT CHAPTER WILL NOT BE UP WITHIN THE NEXT WEEK.  
**I know you're all thinking, 'Oh, yeah, because you update weekly as it is' with a nice sarcastic eye roll. Well, this time, I actually have an excuse as to why the eighteenth chapter is gonna take longer than usual – my family and I are going up to New York on the eighteenth to the twenty third. Obviously, I can't really write while I'm spending time with family (even though I CAN get online), so updates are put on hold. :/ Man. I'll try really hard and attempt to get the chapter out before I leave but, well, we all know how good I am with updates.


	19. Chapter 18: The Beginning of the End

Upside Down

~x~

Author's Note: Well, last chapter sure was kinda sad, wasn't it? I am far too good at writing sob stories. Oh well. This chapter should be a great deal more action-packed. At least, I hope so.

Also; I know I said a couple chapters ago that I'd write out the entirety of Haru vs. whoever, but…well, the more I try to write a fight scene, the less the quality is. So, to save you all the trouble of reading a really crappy fight scene (and, rest assured, it WOULD be crappy) I have another little surprise for you all. :D

Enjoy~

~x~

**Chapter Eighteen: The Beginning of the End**

"Lucia!" screamed Haru, turning a corner sharply. He had been searching for the blonde king for roughly five minutes, yanking open every door and turning every hallway he saw. However, he hadn't gotten very far with his search.

Suddenly, as he turned another corner, the prince found himself running right into a lean body, sending them both falling to the ground. "Haru?" the person cried, landing underneath him. Haru looked down at him and blinked in confusion. "What are…get off of me!" Immediately, the younger blonde jumped up, offering a hand to his friend. "I thought you were fighting Doryu?"

Haru shrugged, placing one hand over his bandaged chest. "I beat em'. What about you and the others, Let? Are they OK?" he asked worriedly, glancing over his friend. He had multiple sword-wounds, forming bruises, and what looked like six holes were on his injured body. However, he didn't seem to be bleeding too profusely; perhaps he had met up with Dalmatian and had taken some of that potion.

"I met up with Sir Jegan shortly after you met King Doryu," he said, brushing off his bare chest. Haru stared at him, his mouth open slightly. "Sir Jegan was the man behind the troubles in Makai. I had left him in charge while Julia, Musica and I visited you. He was, in the end, only looking for power and saw an opportunity with Lucia."

The prince nodded, understanding that feeling of being betrayed. "What about everyone else? Have you seen them?" he asked worriedly, glancing around the wide corridor. He hadn't seen anyone since Dalmatian, Julius, and Nagisa had revived him, and the prince wasn't entirely sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

"I witness Musica and Reina fighting a demon," said Let thoughtfully, "But when I asked them if they needed assistance, they declined." Haru nodded knowingly – the two of them were probably going head-to-head above having help in the first place. "I have not seen Julia nor Sieg Hart, though. I suppose they've either defeated their enemies, or are still fighting them."

Haru sighed. "The two of us should stay together," he said softly, rubbing the back of his head nervously, "You know, in case the others find us. It'll be easier to make sure everyone's alright if we're all together." Let nodded in agreement, glancing down at the hallway over Haru's shoulder. "For now, we better just keep on moving. There's no way any of them will lose." The king nodded again, but the two did not move. Haru bowed his head, silently praying to whatever God might be up there for the safety of his dear friends. Next to him, Let did the same, leaving the two in a moment of silence.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?"

Immediately, the two snapped to attention, swiveling on the spot. The man looming behind them was larger than any other the two had seen before, with a strange looking flat haircut, and long, curly eyebrows. "You're that dude –" Haru started to say, his mouth popping open in shock.

The man interrupted him with a loud laugh, glaring down at them both. "My name is Sir Hardner! I am the greatest of the Eliean Knights! Well, I was until I betrayed them all," he said, smirking widely. Haru's eyes widened in anger, and he gripped the hilt of his sword tightly to prevent himself from lunging forwards again. "Are you two the only ones left? I heard there was a break-out, so I came to investigate, but you two pieces of scum are all I've found."

Before Haru could charge him, Let raised his arm, stopping him. "Control yourself," he breathed softly. The prince glared at his friend for a second before straightening up once more.

"We don't need our friends to help us," spat the prince tightly, gripping his sword tight enough to make his knuckles turn white, "Let and I can kick your ass by ourselves." The older one nodded sharply, sliding his foot back and raising his fists.

Hardner watched them for a second, suddenly bursting out into laughter. "You two fools think you can defeat me?" he demanded, stopping for a second before continuing his laughter. "Clearly, the line of nobility has run its' course. It is time for a new bloodline! And I shall be more than pleased to defeat you two to do so."

Once his announcement was over, the betrayer pulling a long sword that was curved all around the edges, and yet just as sharp as Haru's Ravelt was. The two had no time to question why his sword was so strange, however – the man charged forward at a speed much faster than either of them would have imagined he possessed. As if by a second nature, they dove apart to evade the attack, landing in a mess against opposite sides of the hallway with Hardner between them.

_Shit…this one's gonna be a lot tougher than facing Doryu,_ Haru realized glumly, _But, I don't know how much time I have left! Who knows if Lucia managed to break that seal on Elie that Sieg was talking about…I can't be here fighting him if he has! But…but, I can't just leave Let here to face him…he'd get murdered! No, I'm sorry, but Elie's going to have to wait. There's no way I can defeat Lucia with this bastard roaming the halls of my castle._

"Hey!" called Haru, picking himself up carefully, "Hardner. Me an' Let are gonna kick your ass, and then I'm gonna find Lucia and save Elie. Sound good to you?" The blonde grinned, feeling his pulse in his hands. The knight twitched slightly, his eyes going wide. Haru did not continuing taunting him – regardless of how tempting it was – and instead, dove forward to attack the man, letting loose a scream of frustration: the fight had started.

**x**

_Oh God. Oh God, I'm dead. Lucia killed me, didn't he? Or maybe that man – Haja? I think – was wrong, and gave him poison instead of an unsealing. Maybe he's actually on Haru's side…but, then, why would he poison me?_

_No…that isn't right. Haja betrayed everyone – he's been on Lucia's side since the beginning. And Hardner and the Blue Guardians. I was so stupid…_

"How much time left must I wait?"

_Huh? Lucia? Oh…that means I can't be dead. But…who's he talking to? I can't see anything…_

"I cannot estimate, my King. It would appear that the seal Sieg Hart placed over her has strengthened since the last time she used Etherion. It was always known that unsealing the magic would be a strain on her body, however, it seems that her body has simply rejected the liquid."

_That's what you get, you bastards! I'll fight anything you try to give me if it means saving my friends from death. Even if that means losing myself in the process!_

"She is fighting against the unsealing process, or is the seal merely too complex to be broken by any but the magician that sealed her?"

_Sieg is the one that sealed Etherion, I remember. I was really little…it was right after Mom died. And, it hurt so much, too…I was sick for weeks. But, Sieg didn't say anything about having to be the one to unseal it. He said anyone that knew the right stuff could do it…I guess he didn't tell anyone else._

"Sieg Hart is dead. I killed him with my own two hands, my King."

_What? No. No, Sieg can't be dead…!_

"You better pray your liquid works correctly then, Haja, as we now have no way of unsealing Etherion otherwise!"

_Sieg…no, you can't be dead…if you die, then I'll truly be parentless. You were always there for me in the ways my mother and father were not…you can't just leave me like that. Please, Sieg. Don't be dead…please…_

**BEGIN DREAM SEQUENCE/FLASHBACK (A/N: I seem to have a lot of these, huh?)**

"_I wanna see Momma!" screamed a young girl, flailing desperately to escape the man carrying her's grip. However, the man was much older than she, and a great deal stronger than her feeble childhood flails. "Get off of me! I command you!"_

_The man rolled his eyes, merely tightening his grip on the girl. "Princess, how many times must we tell you about your mother's health?" he asked briskly, yanking open a door roughly and setting her down, quickly shutting the door and locking it – she was much too little to reach the lock. Despite knowing this, the little girl pushed past his legs and tried to reach it, standing on her toes and jumping._

_"Momma says health shouldn't stop me from getting to see her," whined the girl, dropping to her normal height and glaring at the man. "She says that me and Plue can come see her whenever we want to."_

_The man sighed, crouching down to her level and placing a hand on the back of her head. "Princess Resha," he said softly, "I would like nothing more than to give you free visitations to your mother. However, her health simply is not permitting you a visit at the current moment. Plue is unable to visit her anymore due to a sudden allergy that seems to have formed due to his fur, as I told you after your last visit."_

_Resha jutted out her lower lip, stamping her foot. "It isn't fair! Nagisa gets to see her Mommy every day, and so does Shiba and everyone else! How come I get to see her only some times, Sieg?" she asked, her eyes going wide with innocence._

_Again, Sieg sighed, closing his eyes for a second before reopening them. "The Queen is not well. We are doing everything known to revive her, but until then, visits are not a good idea. I understand that this is not the ideal situation for you, Princess, but patience shall reward you," he said gently, gently squeezing her shoulder once before standing up straight. The brunette huffed in disapproval – not fully understanding what the knight had said – turning around and realizing that he had led her right into her room. "I'm going down to the kitchens to see if I can sneak a snack up for you and Plue before dinner," said Sieg firmly, as if that would make up for not being allowed to see her mother._

_"OK," said the princess absently, walking away from him and towards her four-roomed bedroom. Sieg sighed again, but turned and left the princess to her peace._

_There were hundreds of toys scattered around her bedroom, but Resha had no interest in any of them. The reason she had wanted to see her mother so badly was because, several hours ago, she had discovered that she could do something amazing. The brunette had been out on the grounds playing with Plue and the strangest thing happened; despite the warm sun, and the beautiful day, the little girl got very cold. It was the sort of cold that made her want to crawl into bed, or next to a roaring fire with Nagisa or Shiba. However, the people of her castle would think she had lost her mind if she requested a nice, roaring fire in the middle of summer._

_So, without thinking, the little girl held her hands over the grass as if a fire was already there, imagining the warmth of the flames tickling against her hands and, without any warning, a small golden light began to emit from her hands. Before she knew it, a large fire appeared in front of her, the flames golden rather than the usual orange and red. Resha had screamed, but before anyone could even hear her, the fire vanished, leaving no scorch or burn marks on the ground._

_It had been so amazing, so fantastic, that Resha wanted her mother to be the first person – besides herself and Plue – to see what she could now do. After her, she would show Daddy, and then Shiba. But, Sieg wasn't going to let her see her Momma yet, so it would have to wait._

_Or would it? A new thought came over Resha, and she suddenly grinned widely. If she couldn't bring the fire to her mother, the brunette would simply bring everyone else to the fire! Happily, she plopped down on a large, plush pillow and stared in front of her._

_The fire came because she was cold, Resha realized after a second, but she wasn't cold anymore. She wasn't even hot – she was just fine. But, she still wanted to create the fire and show everyone else what she could do – maybe her Momma would get out of bed and come to see it too!_

_Determination flooded through her, she placed her hands over the space in front of her, forming a small semi-circle about five inches above the ground. A sudden warmth came over her hands, and in seconds, that same golden light appeared under her palms. However, Resha knew instantly something was different – the light was brighter, quickly engulfing the entire bedroom. Immediately, the brunette tried to cut of the warmth, to get rid of the blinding light – anything to make the fire-like pain shooting through her body. Heat and pain quickly replaced her determination and curiosity, and a shrill scream escaped from her lips._

_It was like the golden light was a pair of shackles, keeping her hands bound in place. Although her hands were not touching, Resha felt something beginning to form between her hands, something that was only halfway solid. She couldn't get the definite shape of what she was creating – too much pain and heat. "Sieg!" she screamed loudly, tears beginning to stream down her cheeks. Next to her, Plue was jumping around, jumping up and grabbing her arm to try and bring it down. However, Resha didn't even feel his little paws on her arm due to the pain._

_Somewhere, doors were banging open and people were screaming, but Resha couldn't hear them. The only thing she could hear anymore was her own beating heart, and the flood of energy that was flowing from her hands into the air, a flow that was out of control._

_And then, with as little warning as when it had started, the light vanished. A soft gasp escaped Resha's lips, and she fell sideways onto the floor, shaking slightly. Dimly, she heard people screaming over her, calling her name and shouting instructions, but the little girl tuned it out, feeling a welcoming embrace of sleep take control._

_**t**_

"_How could she possibly have summoned forth so much Etherion? There was more magic flooding out of her body than all of the Mage's in this kingdom combined!"_

_"You're Majesty, calm yourself. We've known since birth of Lady Resha's power. We simply did not expect it to awaken so soon into her life."_

_"Do you know what's happened because of that?"_

_Silence. "Of course, Sire."_

_"Then, do not tell me to calm myself, Sir Sieg! Had whatever she created not finished when it did, the whole damn castle would have been destroyed!"_

_"I am aware of the consequences, but –"_

_"Do not interrupt me! There is a hole coming from my daughter's bedroom! My daughter is undergoing a fever similar to the one she suffered at birth! My wife, who had been so ill for the past six and a half years ran to try and save our daughter and only exposed herself to magic her body could not take!"_

_"Sire! Sire, please. I am fully aware of the consequences of what took place this afternoon, and I cannot apologize enough for not taking better care to prevent such a thing. It was my understanding that Etherion wouldn't be useable from Lady Resha until her tenth year, elsewise I would have sealed her until the time training began!"_

_"My wife is _dead_! My daughter may be facing the same fate! I left you in charge of overseeing my daughter as she grew while I could not; I did not specify a slip-up, Sieg Hart!"_

_Silence again. "Understand. It shall not happen again, You're Majesty."_

_"For your sake, I would certainly hope not."_

_Groggily, Resha rolled over. She had seen her father upset before, but never before had his anger lashed out as such. It was just her luck that she was not facing them when her eyes fluttered open – who knows how his anger would have reached her. "Princess!" cried Sieg Hart, appearing next to her. There was a ringing silence that came only from a door slamming shut, and her father was nowhere to be seen._

_The brunette groaned, feeling as though her body had turned into jelly. "What…what happened?" she croaked, finding herself very parched. In a flash, a glass of water appeared near her mouth, and she drank it gratefully, accepting three more before declining._

_"Do you remember the story I told you about the Goddess?" he asked gently, carefully pushing her back onto her back. "About how she gifted a mortal babe with her incredible power?" Resha thought about it for several minutes, slowly nodding. "The child I spoke of…she was you, Princess. You were gifted the power of the God's, and it is because of this power your mother was so ill."_

_The brunette stared at him blankly, her mind going to that golden light. "Then…that's what I was doing? I was…using the power of the God's?" she asked in shock, her eyes suddenly going wide. Before he could answer, Plue jumped onto her lap, burying its' little head against her tiny stomach. "P-Plue! You're OK!" cried Resha, hugging him tightly._

_"Milady," interrupted Sieg softly, placing a hand on her shoulder, "What you did with that power – Etherion, we call it – was remarkable. You created something from thin air. Not even I can accomplish that without killing myself, and yet…here you are. I'm very proud of you."_

_Resha and Plue grinned at each other. "Puun!" cried Plue cheerfully, clapping his hands together for his best friend as she laughed._

_Sieg sighed, holding up a hand to settle them. "Unfortunately…I'm sure you can recall that blinding light that resulted from your creation, correct?" he added somberly, his eyes suddenly rimming red. Resha and Plue froze, nodding slowly. "The light was not limited to your quarters, I'm afraid. It spread throughout the entire castle – and parts of the city itself – and began to…dissolve the walls of your bedroom. The one directly behind where you had been sitting was most badly damaged, as it was closest to you. It is suspected that, if your creation had not been completed when it did, the light would have turned into pure Etherion and destroyed everything it touched, not stopping until your creation finished."_

_"O…K. But, what does that have to do with anything?" asked Resha lightly, pouting slightly. Sieg took a deep breath, bowing his head for a solid sixty seconds before carefully grabbing her shoulders and pulling her into an embrace. "Sieg?"_

_"I told you a moment ago," he breathed in her ear softly, "that birthing the Child of Etherion is what caused your mother's illness. We believe that it was poisoning her blood, and that is why she has not been healthy since she became pregnant with you all those years ago. As the light spread through the castle, she felt the need to get up and make sure you were alright. However, she was exposed to far too much Etherion…it was too much for her already damaged body to withstand._

_"Princess, I'm so sorry. You're mother died shortly after you collapsed."_

_Resha stared at him – or rather, what she could see through his long blue hair. "Momma's…dead?" she repeated slowly, the words falling off her tongue in odd shapes. Her mother _couldn't _be dead. Mother's weren't allowed to die. It just wasn't right. "Sieg, you shouldn't lie about stuff like that," reprimanded the princess with a grin, shaking her head. "Momma's aren't allowed to die before their kids. Don't you know that?"_

_Sieg sighed, pulling away to look her in the eye. "Resha Valentine," he said softly, using her first name for the first time in a very long time, "have I ever lied to you? Told you something that isn't true, or that couldn't honestly happen to someone?"_

_For a few seconds, the two simply stared at one another, with Plue periodically glancing between the two. Finally, understanding washed over the six year old. "Momma's…dead?" she asked again, the words suddenly clicking with her. "Momma's dead because of…me?" Sieg shook his sharply, grabbing her shoulders tightly._

_"No. No, Resha, you're mother died because her body was too weak to carry on. Her death would have happened regardless of your display of Etherion," he told her firmly, his eyes glazing over slightly. Resha stared at him, wanting nothing more than to believe what he said, to listen to that calm voice wordlessly and trust him. However, her mother just simply couldn't have died. It just wasn't possible._

_The brunette looked down at her hands and shook her head, closing her eyes tightly. "Momma can't be dead!" she cried, trying to rip away from Sieg's strong hands. However, the knight was too strong, and she did not go anywhere. "I didn't get to say goodbye! She can't be gone!"_

_Before she could do anything more Sieg pulled her against his chest, embracing the girl tightly. "I'm so sorry, Resha," he breathed softly. The brunette didn't reply, too shocked and confused to cry. The knight repeated his statement, rubbing her back slightly. Resha reached for Plue's paw, finding it and squeezing it tightly._

_"Puun?"_

_No one answered the dog, too lost in the sudden flood of sadness that was surging through the room. "Princess," said Sieg after a bit, breaking away from the embrace, "Princess, I must place a seal over Etherion. It shall leave neither scar nor blemish; however…I can only imagine how it will feel. It is not often that a seal must be placed over one's magic, so research into it has been inconclusive."_

_Resha stared at him blankly, and he nodded – she hadn't understood a word he said. "I'm going to do so magic on you, Princess. However, I can't guarantee whether it will hurt or not," he tried again, gently laying her down on her back. "If it hurts too much, I'll cast a simple sleeping spell so you won't have to endure it, OK?" The brunette nodded, closing her eyes gently. "Just tell me if it's going to hurt, OK?"_

**END DREAM SEQUENCE/FLASHBACK**

"L-Let," gasped Haru, falling next to his friend, Ravelt clattering as it hit the stone ground. He was bloodied, with his strength holding on only by the sheer force of his will. The king, however, was worse off than he was – his clothes were in tatters, and blood covered most of what could be seen on his body. A ways behind them, Hardner lay on the ground, every bit as bloodied as Let was. The two had won the battle, but Haru wasn't entirely sure if one could call it a victory.

"Let, come on, wake up," said Haru again, shaking him slightly. After a second of silence, the older blonde moved his head slightly, his eyes opening slowly. "Listen, you wait here, OK? I'm gonna go find Dalmatian or someone to help," he said, standing up.

Without glancing down at his friend, Haru took off, not entirely sure where he was headed. The fight with Hardner was unlike anything else he had ever imagined – the man had continually used healing spells on himself during the battle, as well as using a strange move on both of them. The spell – at least, Haru was pretty sure it was a spell – seemed to recall every single pain the recipient had ever endured in his entire life. It was used on Let fairly soon into the battle, but the king had still fought alongside Haru. By the time it was used on Haru, Hardner's magic seemed to be draining, so his pain recall was not as severe as Let's.

The prince grabbed the nearest door and yanked it open, finding himself in the kitchen. He had thought that they had been on the other side of the castle, so this stopped him for a second. No one was in here, and the entire place was a huge mess. Carefully, Haru closed the door behind and stepped in further, running his hands across the ruined kitchen counter.

It was amazing, he realized slightly, that this room could be so peaceful – even with the mess – during such a critical battle. Haru sighed slightly, about to turn and leave when something caught his eye. A cupboard door was hanging ajar off to his far right, with what looked like small glass bottles stacked inside of it. In one fluid motion, the prince was in front of the cupboard, moving aside the slightly broken door to get a better look. The glass bottles were lined up neatly on three shelves, but the first line of them on the bottommost shelf was missing. Haru carefully took one out, holding it up to the light. After examining it for a little bit, the prince gasped, finally recognizing them – it was the potion Dalmatian gave him after his fight with Doryu! The cooks must have had these in store to put into the food in the morning; though why these weren't found in the infirmary was beyond the prince. Gratefully, Haru popped open the cork of the bottle in his hand, downing the liquid in one breath.

Immediately, his strength restored itself tenfold, and any injuries he might have had from his fight with Hardner vanished – which was good; he had been thrown against the wall mid battle, and it felt like a rib or two had broken. How he managed to get here in the first place was anyone's guess. Carelessly, the prince tossed the bottle away from him, grabbing one more and rushing out of the kitchens. This was exactly what Let needed right now, and he'd take it to him as fast as he could.

As he ran, the prince noticed a silence like death filling the entire castle. There was no distant clash of swords, of scream of agony. Bodies of the soldiers littered the ground, some groaning in pain and some silent. As he continued to run, the prince felt his heart beginning to break – all those injured people, and he couldn't do anything to help them. However, Let was more important to him than these nameless enemies, so he kept on running.

After a few minutes of running, Haru found Let and Hardner again. Like he had left them, the two were simply laying in a small puddle of their own blood – Haru tried his best to ignore that little detail, choosing instead to focus on his friend. "Let," he said softly, kneeling next to him, "Let, can you hear me?" Let groaned slightly, his eyes cracking open in response. Haru grinned, popping off the cork and lifting his head under his neck, holding it next to his lips. "This is gonna help. It'll stop the bleeding and fix any injuries you have," he explained, gently nudging his mouth open and pouring the liquid down.

Let drank the potion messily, spilling some out of his mouth. However, Haru did not stop pouring until every last drop was inside his mouth. When he had drunk the last drop, the prince tossed the bottle away, watching his friend worriedly. His wounds, while they didn't heal themselves completely, stopped bleeding, and Haru sighed in relief. "Listen, Let, I'm gonna go find Lucia. He can't hide anymore. I know the potion restored a lot of your health and all that, but just stay here and rest, OK?"

"R-right," the king grunted, clearly not enjoying being told what to do by Haru. "I…need to find the…others," he gasped out, placing a hand over his wounds. Haru sighed and, seeing no other way to try and convince his friend to stay still, stood up and grabbed his sword, getting ready to continue his search.

"Puun!"

Immediately, Haru spun around and grinned widely. "Plue!" he cried, watching as the little creature ran down the hall and jumped over Let, right onto Haru's shoulder. "You wanna come with me too?" asked the prince, staring at him sideways.

The dog nodded eagerly, punching the air with his tiny feet. "Pu-puun," he answered. Haru smirked, nodding once more at Let and taking off.

There was only one room Haru could think of. It had been the peacefulness of the kitchen that gave him the idea – the workers must have fled when they heard the screaming, leaving all the quarters completely free. Lucia must have expected his prisoners to escape, so instead of strutting around the castle or the ballroom, he chose to hide in an unlikely place – the sleeping quarters.

Haru increased his speed a little bit, Plue just barely hanging onto his shirt. Quickly, the prince turned the corner and found himself in a completely empty hallway. Every hallway thus far had bodies littered around it, the numbers being the only thing that varied. Here, however, the only sign that anyone had even come down this hallway after the ball was a trail of bloodied footsteps, heading straight for a room at the far end. They were huge, bulking footsteps, and they looked so sure of themselves, Haru knew without a doubt that they did not belong to someone who was in the least bit wounded. Carefully, the blonde followed the footsteps, his eyes never leaving the trail.

When they ended, Haru found himself staring at a thick wooden door. A small amount of blood was on the doorknob, but the blonde ignored it; grabbing it gently and pushing the door open.

Unlike the previous times Haru had visited this room, it was almost completely empty. No beds or chests lined the walls; the only thing that had been left intact was the thick dark curtains, pulled over to hide the rising sun. Without the beds and such, the room seemed to have grown in size, and Haru stepped in even more carefully than when he had been following the bloodied footsteps. As he entered, he noticed something lying towards the back of the room, a dim trail of blood going from the center of the room to where she lay.

"Elie!" cried Haru, running forward suddenly. In seconds, the prince was kneeling down next to her, gazing down at her in horror. Like Let, she was very severely injured, but that was the least of his worries. Her breath was very faint, but he could visibly see her chest rising and fall due to her heartbeat – it was more prominent than her actual breathing. "Oh no, no, no, no. Elie. Elie come on, wake up," he said, setting Ravelt down on the flood and gently raising her torso.

Like wet noodles, her arms fell limply to the ground. Haru felt his heart drop; what if Lucia had done something to make sure she was unable to control Etherion once it was unsealed?

"She can't hear you."

An immediate chill filled the prince, and he fought a shiver. Carefully, he turned around and glared at the king. "What did you do to her?" he demanded, his voice echoing loudly throughout the room. Lucia smirked, holding the same thick black sword he had threatened Elie with when he kidnapped her.

"I gave her a potion that would unseal Etherion. It should not have taken nearly as long, but, unfortunately, it was not calculated that the seal would strengthen over time. A foolish assumption, I suppose," said Lucia lightly, his eyes falling on what Haru wasn't blocking of Elie, looking hungry. "You still call her Elie, Prince. Is it because you do not wish to believe your darling lover lied to you all this time? Or do you truly wish to live in such ivory tower ways?"

Haru's eyes narrowed. "I call her Elie because she hasn't told me to call her Resha," he said calmly, gently setting Elie and grabbing Ravelt. "Plue, see if you can do anything to help Elie, OK?" he commanded, stepping forward.

The dark blonde laughed sharply, shaking his head. "You know nothing of which you speak, Glory," said Lucia in mockery, laughing again, "Soon, Etherion shall be free, and I shall control it to destroy this feeble world! None shall stop me!"

"Oh, yeah?" cried Haru, charging forward. Immediately, Lucia blocked the attack, sliding back several inches. "I've taken down two of your bastards, King," he reminded him disdainfully, "What makes you think I won't be able to kick your ass too?" On the last word, Haru pushed him back more, coming forward once more with an attack to his left. With ease, Lucia blocked it again, pushing the prince back this time.

"I suppose you and I are destined for a death battle, Glory," he spat, his eyes narrowing for the first time, "It is time for the prophecy to come true! And I, the Golden King, shall defeat the worthless Silver Prince!"

Haru scoffed, ducking as Lucia went to slash him sideways. "Like hell!" he cried, bringing his sword against Lucia's legs. The king jumped up to avoid it, landing some several feet away from him. "This is it, Lucia! There's no way I'm gonna let you take control of Etherion," he promised, taking a stance. Lucia scoffed, taking his own stance, "And there's no way I'm gonna let you destroy the world!"

~x~

Author's Note: This is it! The Lucia-Haru fight! I might actually try to write this one, but I dunno.  
SORRY THIS TOOK SO DAMN LONG.  
Got back from vacation, was busy for two days, and then…school started on Thursday. (I dunno why it started on a Thursday either…) So, there was that to get in the way of my time to write. I was gonna try and finish this last night, but…I was over at a friend's house until about 11:30pm. Ahaha…yeah…

Anyways, hopefully the next one will be up a lot sooner than this one was! I'm also hoping to wrapping this story up in…one more chapter, actually. And then a small epilogue and then the little bit of backstory. But, that's just what I'm planning. Nothing ever goes according to plan with me, so you might end up getting two more chapters and an epilogue, not just one. I dunno yet. We'll see how it plays out~  
Also: Reviews. Are. Loved. Much, MUCH more than you might think. :D


	20. Chapter 19: The Fight for the World

Upside Down

~x~

Author's Note: I'm terribly, terribly sorry that my updates have become so…sluggish. I really am. School, and distractions have been making it difficult to focus on writing. (Granted, I WAS reading a 1,200+ page comic/kicking butt in a mindless video game…so, really, there is no excuse for me…)  
However, after days of distractions of all kind, and writing in my school notebooks until part of my pinky finger stained (stupid inability to lift my hand when I write…) I give you…CHAPTER NINETEEN!  
No, wait, I lied. xD I have several replies to give to some of my reviewers, so bear with me.

**many-fanatic** – That's awfully generous of you, but I'm gonna have to decline. xD I don't even want children of my OWN, so your firstborn would be much better off with you than me. :3

**The gangsta of love** – Your support really does mean the world to me. :D It legitimately makes me feel bad when I get distracted and realize that you're out there waiting for me to update. Hopefully, I won't disappoint!

**mature-yet-innocent** – Well, you see, I just barely have the talent to write ONE fight scene. –laugh- What makes you think I can write all those other ones? I'm sorry. :/ I really, really am. Don't you worry though; I'm gonna work on this inability to write fighting scenes, alright? In TBOT or the next story I'm planning, they'll be a fight scene that'll make you proud!

Alright! That's lengthy, I know, but…well, I much more prefer to give my lovely reviewers credit inside of my stories, rather than message them (that…and, well, I can't message two of three listed above. Meh.) so, now: ONVARDS TO CHAPTER NINETEEN. (Must be said in a Germanic accent, by the way. x3)

**YES, I CHANGED MY USERNAME AGAIN.  
Why? Well, I don't really know. xD I got tired of the old one, so I changed it. :D I'm fickle like that sometimes.**

~x~

**Chapter Nineteen: The Fight for the World**

Desperately, Haru charged forward, Ravelt gripped tightly in his hands. Lucia lifted his own sword just in time to block the attack. The two had been fighting for maybe a total of five minutes, but to both members of royalty, it felt like five hours.

Haru had been trained especially in two aspects – endurance, and strength. Shiba had told me point blank that technique didn't matter so much, and to just make up his own as he went along. However, it was very clear that Lucia had been told something very similar, and the two had a mindset riding on the same wavelength when it came to swordplay; the king was impossible to knock down, but came full-on with attacks not unlike the ones Haru was throwing at him.

However, the prince had to hand it to himself; out of all the injuries both the men had sustained during this particular fight, Lucia was worse off than Haru. "You understand nothing!" screamed the king suddenly, his face screwed up in concentration as he did a strange twirling attack, trying to hurt Haru's left side.

"I don't need to understand!" Haru screamed back, jumping back to avoid the attack. "You wanna destroy the world using Etherion! What else is there to understand, you bastard?" That said, he jumped forward once more, bringing in Ravelt from his left.

Lucia scoffed, blocking the attack once again. "This is the wrong world, and it my destiny to end it!" he replied with malice, his golden eyes widening. Haru had no time to ask him what the hell he was talking about, too focused on defending. "And I shall take Princess Resha Valentine with me to the Real World to recreate the life!" he added with a snarl, pushing Haru back a couple of inches, "I shall be a God."

The prince rolled his eyes, pushing against Ravelt with his hands and sending Lucia flying backwards from the sheer force of his strength. "What makes you think Elie'd ever wanna repopulate the world with _you_?" he demanded, pointing Ravelt at him, "Besides. I already told you, I'm not letting you use Etherion for _any_thing, especially not to destroy the world!"

The two shot forward at the same time, colliding in the center of the room. "Nobody can stop me!" screamed Lucia, veins protruding from the king's red face. Before Haru could reply, the king swung his sleek sword, connecting with the prince's side. A cry of agony split from Haru's side, and he fell to the ground, clutching the wound; Lucia's sword had pierced through roughly two inches of his side.

"Can't…can't give…up," muttered Haru, blood dripping from his mouth and gushing from his side. Shakily, he pushed himself onto all fours, grabbing Ravelt's hilt once more and getting back to his feet. "This little wound," he continued, using his free hand to grab the remains of his silk shirt and yanking it off of his body, "Isn't even painful!" Lucia smirked, watching him from about ten feet away.

"Really? That's good," he said in mock concern, his confidence so apparent on his face, "I haven't quite gotten enough of your torture." Haru cried out in a combination of pain and abhorrence, swinging at Lucia as soon as he was close enough. However, the blonde quickly countered it, laughing once more. "What happened, prince? That attack was pitiful!" he sneered, his bloodshot eyes widening once again, "Is your body truly exhausted?"

Haru didn't answer with words, choosing instead to pour as much strength as he could into pushing Lucia back, their swords sliding apart. However, the prince wasn't done with his attack yet – he continued to come forward, swinging Ravelt from his right at the king. "You're the pitiful one, Lucia!" he screamed. The small stone inside of his sword began to glow, and with strength Haru wasn't aware he had until that moment, a small explosion sounded as he ran past Lucia, engulfing the Golden King in its' full blast.

As expected, Lucia went flying back, catching himself on one hand and flipping over onto all fours, looking up quickly. "Im…impossible!" he gasped, burn marks covering his body. However, other than the slight burn, Haru was disappointed to see that his explosion had little other effect – or Lucia truly was just as able to take a hit as Hardner.

"It's not too late, Lucia!" cried Haru, grabbing his injured side loosely, "Etherion can be sealed and this can be all over!"

The darker blonde didn't answer except to bring himself into a standing position once more. "This is Gods' retribution towards man! The retribution of God for mankind's sin of creating this parallel world!" he screamed, gasping for breath.

Haru shook his head, refusing to believe his words. "How the hell is creating another world mankind's' fault?" he retorted angrily, his grip on Ravelt tightening slightly. "If this world wasn't around today, you wouldn't exist either!" Lucia jumped forward, his anger coming off of him in waves of absolute fury.

"That's why this is the greatest sin of mankind!"

"This isn't anybody's fault!" replied Haru, their swords connecting in a loud flash.

Lucia scoffed again, both blocking all of Haru's attacks and handing out his own. "You know nothing," he gasped between clashes, "yet you talk like you know all!"

The prince's eyes narrowed as he narrowly avoided a swing to his neck. "Alpine told me everything!" he finally revealed, slashing down against Lucia's chest lightly – not enough to truly injure him, unfortunately. "The first world was devastated once, but the last human used Stellar Memory and Etherion to reverse time…no! To convert the time continuum into two separate bodies!" Just as Lucia was about to reply, Haru pushed him back, denying whatever answer he was about to give. "One is a world of forged human civilization…the 'parallel world'," he said hotly, "And the other is the true ongoing time, the 'concurrent world'!"

The darker blonde gnashed his teeth at the prince as he took blow after blow, blocking several and ignoring those which he could not. "If that's so," he asked breathlessly, "why do you chose to live in this fake world?"

Haru gasped in pain as Lucia's sword grazed his arm, blood beginning to drip from the injury. "Nobody says it's fake!" he cried out, about to bring Ravelt down against him once more.

"This is a wrong world!" Lucia cried, a deranged look suddenly coming over his face. Veins appeared on his face again, and his pupils were just mere specks within all that gold. "My mother was killed before my eyes! I was confined into solitude for a decade!" he screamed, halting Haru with this sudden burst of knowledge, "This is absolutely a wrong world!"

So shocked by Lucia's sudden proclamation, the prince didn't even lift a hand as his black sword pierced through his injured side, the blade going all the way through and the hilt very nearly touched his tender stomach. No scream of agony came from his mouth, but he began to fall forward, just barely stopping himself from hitting Lucia. The king, however, leaned forward so his mouth was nearly against Haru's ears. "Can you…ever deny it…Haru?" he whispered, drawing the sword out.

As if the pain was being stabbed wasn't enough, the intense pain that shot through Haru's entire body just by the blade being removed was enough to make the prince slacken his grip on Ravelt, and drop to his knees once more. Desperately, he grabbed his side, trying to stop the flood of blood pouring from his left side. "This…this world…is not…yours…alone," he gasped out shakily, refusing to give up. Blood filled his mouth, and he coughed it up, falling onto his stomach. "The pain…isn't yours alone…either," he added softly, closing his eyes for a second, "But…but everyone…chooses to…live on. And…and believe in…their very own…future." With some difficulty, Haru lifted his head so his chin was touching the ground, glaring at Lucia from the ground. "You have no right to destroy their world!"

Before he could register the anger and hatred on Lucia's face, he was sent flying back, hitting the wall with his back. More blood began to flood from his mouth and side as he fell limply onto his back, both hands clutching his wounds. "Sorry to tell you," said Lucia from above him, clearly enjoying his opponents pain, "But I have this right.

"Very, very long ago…there was a girl. Her name was…Aciela. Aciela…

"After the destruction of the world, she was the lone survivor from the destruction. The last human, as you called her," he said, watching as Haru writhed on the ground in agony. "Aciela Raregroove," he added softly, smirking at Haru's expression of mixed surprise and pain. "That's right. She is my ancestor.

"Aciela manipulated Stellar Memory and Etherion to distort the time continuum to return the world back to its splendorous age. She who had experienced the destruction…no doubt was gifted the power of Etherion, and…as a result, the knowledge of Stellar Memory that you and I lack.

"Therefore, a new world was given birth…the 'parallel world'. To the Gods, Aciela was labeled as the origin of sins bore by mankind. Aciela must've regretted her decision…she was not supposed to commit a sin so deep," he added, sounding thought, as if this was a story he had heard a million times in the past.

Slowly, Haru began to raise himself, his determination flooding as strong and true as the blood from his wounds. "Her thoughts," he gasped out shakily, "No one knows."

Lucia laughed, shaking his head. "Oh, but I know. This cursed bloodline of mine is the proof, Glory. The past wars between my nation and yours were the threats of the world! Everything is caused by my blood!" The king let out another laugh, beginning to quiver slightly. "Thus, my mother – a descendent of Aciela – was killed! I was stripped of freedom before I had truly reached childhood, forced to live in isolation for a decade!"

The prince lifted himself up slightly further, glaring at the king with a hatred he didn't even know he had. However, Lucia must not have appreciated being glared at; without much warning, the king began to kick at Haru. "Forced to accept the fate of discrimination! Forced to kill! How is this not a wrong world!" he demanded in between kicks, laughing loudly. Haru didn't answer, unable to truly focus on anything but the electriclike pain surging through his weak body. "This mistake done by the ancestor," Lucia cried, kicking at Haru one last time and sending him sliding across the floor, a trail of blood left behind, "Inarguably shall be rectified by her descendant!

"I want to annihilate this world! Let everything vanish completely!"

Haru hit the hall with a sickening snap, as if something had broken. For a few seconds, he simply laid there, the dust from the wall concealing his body as it slowly began to ride once more. "Lucia," he gasped, loud enough to hear, "you're just giving yourself…an excuse." The king looked up, watching in horror as Haru picked himself up slowly. "Give all the blame to Aciela…this is the filthy sort of mindset that…can only be spoken by…you."

"This is my destiny. Are you not the same? A slave to the Symphonian bloodline?" asked Lucia just as softly, scoffing.

Haru shook his head slightly, standing up straight once more. "I…listen to everyone. I express…my own voice," he said, picking up Ravelt gently. "Let it be fate…or destiny, but…  
"For the sake of this world, I will fight!" he screamed, widening his stance to make sure he didn't topple over, "It's because of my raging love for this world!"

Lucia's eyes widened once more in shock, clearly not understanding how Haru could still be standing – let alone _alive_. "Lucia," said Haru softly, blood dripping from his mouth again and leaving a metallic taste on his tongue, "try to ask yourself…what are the things more important than your own life?" For a second, the prince's gaze turned to Elie, lying oblivious in a shaking heap a ways away. Before Lucia could reply, or either of them could continue their battle once again, a golden light suddenly began to shoot from Elie and into the sky.

Haru watched in slight fascination as the light suddenly disappeared back into the girl, leaving a ringing silence in its' place. "Elie!" cried Haru, running forward. His injuries and his battle with Lucia…none of it mattered right now. Wordlessly, he fell down next to her, his sword next to him. Gently, he slid one hand under her hot neck, and lifted her up. "Elie," he breathed, watching her carefully.

There was no response from her, but it seemed that whatever strength her body still had was slowly vanishing. "This is it," said Lucia from behind him, his voice quivering once more, "Etherion has been unsealed!"

The prince ignored him, clutching Elie's hand tightly. "Elie, I'm sure you're exhausted and weak," he breathed, a smile coming to his face, "So you just rest, OK? I won't let that bastard get anywhere near you." That said, Haru gently leaned down and kissed her still forehead once before standing up and taking Ravelt in his hand. "Do you know why you won't defeat me?" he asked softly, looking down at the ground. Without warning, he flung himself forward, bringing Ravelt down against the shocked king. "It's because I have something to fight for!"

Lucia cried out in shock, but began to push against Haru's sword. While he had been near Elie, the king's thick black sword had changed shape and decoration – it was shaped much like Ravelt, but it was thicker and complete with a swirling design etched into it. As the two pushed, Haru felt his opponents strength overcoming his, as if his new sword gave him some newfound power.

_No! I can't lose! Elie…everyone…the world! They're all counting on me! _Haru thought bitterly, refusing to succumb to Lucia's strength.

Then, as if they were in the room with him, Haru began to hear his friends. They were weak, and some even sounded broken, but they still rung true in his head. A chorus of his name played in his head, each time a different person. Ravelt began to glow with a silver light, and Haru gave his push one more burst of strength which, to his amazement, flinched Lucia's sword back.

_Haru! Don't give up!_

A scream of frustration filled the room, and Haru finally pushed Lucia's thick sword back, the silver light from Ravelt almost blinding him. "This world…" Haru began to say, feeling the king's sword begin to crack under the weight and pressure of Ravelt, "Will never die!"

Lucia let out a scream of pain and agony, flying backwards. In his hands was the hilt of his sword; the pieces of the blade were flying back with him. Blood poured from Lucia's mouth thickly – Haru must have hit him once the sword had broken without noticing. Shakily, he fell onto the ground as well, panting and gasping for air. _Elie…you're safe now,_ he thought softly, pushing himself off the ground. "It's over, Lucia," he gasped once he got to his feet, standing over the king.

"Kill me," commanded the king without looking at him. Haru blinked – it had never been his intention to kill the man! "I have no desire to live any longer, Mother," he breathed softly. After a second, Haru realized that Lucia was not speaking to him, but to a small sword around his neck.

Haru shook his head, his eyes narrowing. "Lucia! You don't have to die!" he cried, his heart pounding. As much as he hated the blonde, he didn't want him…dead. That was just too cruel. "This world has a future for you! You just have to create it!"

The darker blonde laughed, standing up slowly. He faced Haru, revealing a series of cracks appearing on the left side of his body. He had an expression on his face that Haru had never thought possible – contentedness. With horror, Haru watched as the cracks began to break off, breaking off pieces of Lucia as well. "Take my hand! You don't have to die!" Haru screamed frantically, reaching out for him.

However, Lucia didn't reply, only standing still as his body crumbled away into nothingness. "Haru," he said softly, roughly two-thirds of his body gone, "It's all up to you now."

The prince's eyes widened as he continued to watch, powerless to his enemy's disappearance. "Lucia!" he screamed after a second, but it was too late. Lucia was gone, and the only thing that remained that held any proof of his existence was the hilt of his shattered sword, lying amiss in the rubble of their battle. Shakily, he looked down, trying to contain his tears.

Lucia had been wronged by the world. Yes, he was evil. Yes, he had tried to destroy the world. Yes, he had hurt Elie and countless others. However, no one, no matter how evil, deserved to die. Not even him. "H-Haru…" Immediately, Haru's head snapped up and his eyes landed on his brunette friend. She was still on the ground, but it was apparent that she was awake. Immediately, the prince ran to her side, ignoring the leadlike feeling in his legs, and the vast amount of blood leaving his body.

"I'm right here," breathed the prince once he was next to her, dropping Ravelt next to him. "I defeated Lucia."

Her eyes were open, but just enough to see. She smiled at him. "I'm glad," breathed the princess softly, moaning in pain as her arm moved. "It…hurts," she gasped, closing her eyes, "It hurts so…much."

Haru frowned, feeling his exhaustion beginning to catch up with him. "We'll go get…Sieg," he gasped, struggling to stay conscious. "Can you…walk…?" The prince felt the room begin to spin, and, before Elie could reply, he fell onto his side, consciousness lost.

**x**

"How come they haven't woken up yet?" demanded Julia, resting her chin on the back of her chair. She was in the castle infirmary, along with her friends. However, only she and Musica were not actually in bed; they were the ones that hadn't needed the most medical attention.

From his bed, Let sighed. "Patience, Julia," he said softly, wishing he could get out of bed, "Though we all suffered immense injuries, you must not forget what Prince Haru and Lady Resha endured."

The blonde rolled her eyes, pursing her lips. "I _know_ that," she mumbled, scratching her head where thick bandages were wrapped. "But, it's been a week and a half, and neither of them have woken up! Alpine's taken temporary control of Symphonia, and some dude name Yuma is at Elie Village sorting things out," she reminded them all, "These two _need_ to wake up!"

Musica sighed, closing his eyes. "We're just lucky Lucia didn't kill em' when he had the chance," he muttered. Immediately, a silence fell over the crowd at the mention of death – so many people had been lost in that battle. Countless soldiers had fallen, but the royalties had suffered great causalities as well – all of the Knights of the Blue Sky were gone, except for Alpine, as well as Queen Reina. It appeared that Celia and Fumia had escaped successfully, but no one had bothered to check if they were alive or not. Nagisa, Julius, and Shuda – who had been standing nearby in case something like this had happened, and had come running with the other two when Celia summoned them – hadn't been seen since the aftermath of the battle, and not one of them had seen Sieg Hart. Thankfully, it appeared that no one died in vain – their enemy was also defeated, ridding the castle of the evil.

"Do you think Elie knows Sieg Hart's missing?" asked Let softly, breaking the silence. Immediately, the three Makians looked down, unable to answer. "He defeated King Haja, that much we can be certain of, but his body has not been seen. Could Lucia possibly have known and relayed the message to Elie?"

Musica shook his head, tears stinging in his eyes. "I doubt it. Her body is currently flowing with nearly a decade's worth of Etherion. If she opens her eyes again before it gets all sealed up, I'll be sorely mistaken," he snapped, his frustration beginning to boil over. Julia and Let did not follow up on that, not wanting to fuel his anger any more than it was already.

"It's kinda ironic, isn't it?" asked Julia, breaking the silence once again. "Haru fought Lucia, and he won't wake up. And Elie fought against Etherion, and she won't wake up," she explained with a frustrated chuckle, "Our saviors are unable to open their eyes."

Let closed his eyes, shaking slightly. "They'll wake up," he said firmly, "I have faith in Haru, and I have faith in Elie. Once one set of eyes has opened, the other shall soon follow."

Mere seconds after the king spoke, a soft groan came from the bed to his right, causing everyone awake to snap to attention. "Ugh," moaned Haru, one hand slowly rising up and shielding his eyes from the bright lights above him. "What…where am I?" he asked, peeking out from beneath his fingers. Musica and Julia had moved closer, surrounding his bed carefully.

"You're in the infirmary," replied Musica softly, grinning slightly. "We've got lots of good news, and just as much bad news. Which one do you wanna hear first?" Haru shut his eyes tightly, concentrating on the surging pain that shot through his body as he tried to move his left leg. "Take it easy, dude. You're really lucky you didn't die from those injuries, so just lay low for a while so your body can heal up."

Haru nodded slowly, taking his hand away. "Tell me the good news first," he said warily, squinting in the light. Nothing was truly making sense to him – where were the Knights of the Blue Sky? Or, the Eliean Knights? Or, Reina? Where were they?

Julia took a deep breath, closing her eyes. "Most of the servants managed to escape the castle as the ballroom blitz began," she started, sounding tired, "And, we defeated all the enemies just before you defeated Lucia. Also, the entire castle has been scrubbed free of any mess made by the battles, and whatever was destroyed has been remade. Plue is currently under the protection and constant watch of Alpine, though how he manages to watch that little dog twenty-four/seven is beyond me."

"What about Celia and Fumia? Did they make it to safety?"

The Makians shrugged. "No one's seen them since they left," replied Let gently, "But we are positive their deaths would have been discovered had they happened."

Haru nodded, feeling a sharp pain shoot up his neck. "OK, what's the bad news?" he asked softly, his eyes falling on Musica. The silverclaimer looked more exhausted than the other two, though he wasn't seriously wounded.

"Shiba, Clea, Dalmatian, Deerhound, and Reina are dead. No one's seen the Eliean Knights, and we can't reseal Elie because no one's good enough in magic to do it without killing her."

Immediately, the world began to shine around the edges. Haru stared at him blankly, refusing to believe what he said. His Knights…they couldn't be dead. "No," he said softly, shaking his head. "No, they can't be dead. They were all way…_way_ too strong to be defeated."

Musica shook his head, looking down. "They tried to take out the entire Vulkan, Yuuan, Désan, Kamf, Mildish, and Raregroovian armies by themselves, as well as the men under Sir Hardner," explained Let calmly, shaking slightly, "They managed to defeat nearly every man without losing one member. However, as they began to fight the Raregroovian armies, Clea took several arrows to the chest to save Shiba. After her defeat, Dalmatian collapsed of exhaustion and was soon killed by one of the army men. Deerhound was the only one that actually went down with a fight – he was in combat with several men at once when a general sneaked up behind him and claimed victory."

"And S-Shiba?"

Let looked down. "It is a mystery," he said softly. "Alpine saw the man defeat the final general from where he lay on the ground," explained the king gently, "But, he closed his eyes for a second and when he reopened them, the knight was on the ground – dead."

Haru closed his eyes, unable to stop the stream of tears from flowing down his cheeks. "No," he moaned, shaking his head wildly. "Shiba can't be dead! None of them can be dead!" he screamed, ignoring the pain that lingered in his throat at the proclamation. "They promised me!"

"Shiba's dead?"

As if someone had shoved a cork into the myriad of grief that was beginning to flow from Haru, the prince felt all his pain disappear. "Elie," he breathed, automatically turning to the right. Like him, the brunette was laying in one of the other beds, looking tired and broken. Her brown eyes were wide with shock and fear, staring at Haru openly; her short brown hair was shining as if it had recently been washed, but she too had bandages and pads across various parts of her visible body.

"You said," she started to say, tears forming on her cheeks, "You said Shiba was dead."

Haru nodded, feeling the grief beginning to flood back into him. Numbly, he heard their friends leave the room, including Let, despite being supposedly bedridden. Carefully, and with much pain, Haru got of bed and sat down next to her, realizing then that he was shirtless. "I just found out too," he muttered hoarsely, trying to smile reassuringly at her.

The brunette closed her eyes, tears leaking out from underneath her thin eyelids. Haru let her remain like that for several seconds before very carefully crawling under the covers with her, holding her close to his injured body. "But," she sobbed against his chest, "but, he was my oldest friend."

"It'll be alright," soothed Haru softly, tears falling down his own cheeks. "Everything will be alright. I promise."

Elie cried out in pain, clenching her hands into fists against Haru. The prince felt his heart shatter at the noise, but he simply held her closer. "I'm right here," he breathed against her ear, "I'm not going anywhere."

Neither of them kept track of how long they grieved the loss of their friend, but it was apparent once the two had shed their final tear that it had been several hours. "I'm so sorry," whispered Elie hoarsely, her eyes bloodshot and swollen. "If I hadn't danced with Lucia, none of this would have happened."

Though Haru had no idea what she meant, he shook his head. "No, Elie, Hardner was planning on kidnapping you on the road back to Elie Village," he said gently, wiping his dry eyes. "Seeing you at the ball just gave the bastard a good reason to start a war that would have happened eventually anyways." Elie hiccupped, rubbing her eyes. "None of this is your fault," said Haru firmly, sensing her guilt acutely, "Even if you hadn't been born with Etherion, Lucia would have tried to destroy the world – he just would've had to find a different way."

The brunette looked down, her cheeks suddenly flaring up. "You know," she said gently, sounding ashamed. "I never should have lied to you, Haru. You know that I trust you, right?" the princess asked frantically, her eyes wide again.

Haru laughed, nodding. "Of course I know that," he said grinning widely. However, he knew without looking that his grin was off – the death of loved ones had that effect on people. Suddenly, an image of Celia popped into his head, giving the prince a turn to be ashamed. "Listen, Elie," he started to say, faltering immediately as he looked into the eyes.

He loved her so, so much. Whatever love he had had for Celia was but a candle in comparison to the inferno that was his love for Elie. But, how could he possibly tell her that? "I broke up with Celia."

Elie stared at him blankly, clearly not understanding. Haru mentally swore – he hadn't meant to speak out loud. "I just…my heart wasn't in it. She was constantly jealous, and there just…wasn't any really love. At least, not from me. Well, there's definitely love, but it wasn't for Celia," rambled Haru nervously, laughing.

"I love you, Haru."

For a few minutes, Haru simply stared at her, gulping for air. He wasn't even done with whatever explanation he was going to offer her; hadn't even said the words to her yet. However, Elie was staring into his eyes with such certainty it was hard to be skeptic. "I love you too, Elie," whispered Haru, feeling his pulse beating loudly. "I don't care that you're the Resha Valentine, or that you could kill anyone and anything with a flick of your wrist," he said softly, placing one hand on her cheek gently, "I love you for _you_, Elie."

By now, the brunette had some tears going down her cheeks again. "But, I have to leave," she whispered, placing her hand over his gently, "Elie Village needs me, Haru. My parents are gone, Sieg Hart is…is…" Without warning, the brunette burst into tears, clutching Haru tightly as she sobbed. Haru didn't need a verbal confession, her tears were enough explanation.

"Enough. No more tears."

The voice was firm and brisk, and very much _alive_. Immediately, the two looked up – with some difficulty on Haru's part due to his injuries – and gasped. "Sieg…!" said Haru in shock, staring at the knight with wide eyes.

The man's long blue hair were clean and shining, as Elie's was, but the man looked as if he hadn't slept in some days. Cuts, bruises, and burns of various degrees littered her muscled body, but other than that, he looked like he would survive. Without a word, Elie scrambled from the bed, running to the man and throwing her arms around him. Sieg caught her carefully, placing a hand on the back of her head. "Haja…he said that he…k-killed you," sobbed the brunette, staring up at him.

"He thought he had," admitted Sieg with a sigh, offering her a small smile, "However, he did not take into account Niebel. He sneaked into the castle with the other Eliean Knights, and found me. He healed me, and helped me to kill the sorcerer." Elie's eyes widened, and she gasped. "Do not fret, Princess. Despite his young age, Niebel is highly mature."

Haru grinned widely, collapsing onto his back. "We did it. We won," he said, covering his eyes. "I can't believe it. We stopped the worlds' destruction, and we stopped a war."

From the other side of the room, Elie laughed. "You did most of it, Prince," she said happily, walking over to him. For the first time, Haru realized just how much strain Etherion must be putting on her body – she walked slowly, her feet dragging against the hard floor.

The prince looked up at her, grinning. "Elie," he said seriously, "Will you explain it to me? How you went from being Princess Resha to Elie?"

"Prince, I understand you have endless questions, but I really must suggest that explanations wait until you are both fully healed," interjected Sieg politely, casting his stern gaze on the blonde. Haru pursed his lips, crossing his arms against his battered chest.

Elie did the same, only her stance was much less threatening than Haru's. "It's fine. It's not like I'm gonna act out every scene," she said, rolling her brown eyes. "Besides, he's gonna hear the story eventually, and I'd rather be the one he hears it from." Sieg and Haru stared at her, but the princess gave nothing away.

"I will be with Sir Alpine," said Sieg warily, turning to leave, "Do not hesitate to call me if I'm needed."

The teenagers nodded, waiting until he left to turn to each other and grin. "I can't believe he's alive," muttered Elie, slowly climbing into the bed with Haru once again. As soon as she was under the covers, Haru took her in his arms – it felt so natural, so easy, it was almost worrying. "Alright, well, it all really started out when Lucia came to visit at the castle, and…"

~x~

Author's Note: Yes, I **did** cut off just as Elie was explaining why she went from princess to peasant. WOW. This chapter was both really fun to write, and really, REALLY hard. Like, I probably rewrote scenes and whatnot a dozen times!  
Special thanks to the last several chapters of _Rave Master_ for graciously being the model for the Lucia-Haru fight scene. Really, I would have been at a loss otherwise.  
But, in case you weren't sure, **THIS IS THE LAST ACTUAL CHAPTER OF** _Upside Down_! Now, I'm sure you're all gaping at the computer screen and are slowly plotting ways to find me to kill me in some strange, bizarre way, so before you grab your pitchforks and torches, READ THIS:

There. Will. Be. An. Epilogue.

xD Alright, now that you're all calmed down and not about to kill me, I really, REALLY hope you all had as much fun reading this story as I did writing it!  
It was tough! It was adventurous! It advanced my writing skills more than I would have ever imagined! It took nearly half a year to complete, but…it's DONE! :D Expect to see the epilogue up soon, as well as a very special piece after that (but in the same chapter) sometime within the next week (or two…). And, of course, a little bit of background information about the story!


	21. Epilogue

Upside Down

~x~

Author's Note: Ah, the epilogue. If I was cruel, I'd make you all wait until the 26th to post this. But, I'm not cruel. xD At least, I hope not! :D  
Everyone's special thank you (coughEveryoneThatReviewed) will be at the end! So, if you're just reading this for that thank you, feel free to skip to the end. I already got the count that you read it. Ahahahaha, suckers. x3  
…I'm just kidding. D: I love my readers!

~x~

**Epilogue**

Directly after Prince Haru was healed – which took some time due to the severity of his injuries - the immense clean up began. The carpets were scrubbed for days with both cold and warm water until each and every drop of blood and other stain was a distant memory. Each and every wall was bleached and cleaned free of any remnants of the battle that took place. Entire rooms and hallways were rebuilt due to the sheer force of some of the encounters, but the work was completed in record time.

Before Haru could fully register what was happening, he was crowned King of Symphonia. It happened before he had fully healed, but was timed so that his remaining friends would be there to witness it before other important matters were attended to. Both Elie – going by the name Resha Valentine to the masses – and Musica also gifted the new king with their own special gifts; despite their uses in battle, the two insisted that Rave and Ravelt be ceremoniously handed to him, so he agreed. Haru took both with shaking hands, unable to push away the feeling that it should not be Elie he received Rave from, but Shiba.

During the cleanup process, Haru and friends endured several funerals. The first was the combined funerals' of Dalmatian, Deerhound, and Clea on the royal grounds. Everyone in the entire Symphonian kingdom was invited, and it was estimated that roughly ninety-five percent of them showed up – never before had Haru seen such crowds.

The next funeral that was attended was Queen Reina's funeral, in Elnadia. Though Elnadia was a great deal smaller than Symphonia, many foreigners were there for the funeral as well. Musica was nowhere to be seen throughout the entire process, but Julia later told Haru that the prince didn't want to be seen in public in such devastation as he was.

The final funeral (the funeral's for the lost soldiers were decidedly a private, family affair, and the enemies were shipped back to their respective country with a Knight or vassal with them to ensure no vendetta was sworn) took place in Elie Village, on the grounds of the Eliean Castle.

Elie spoke the crowd, Plue at her side and tears rolling down her cheeks. During the speech, she explained to those confused that, despite Shiba's love and devotion to Symphonia, he was a native Elie Villager, and it was his wish to be buried on the grounds he grew up around. Throughout the entire process, the newly crowned king watched in numb contentedness as his best friend mourned the loss of her closest friend, a feeling of guilt welling up inside of him.

After Shiba's funeral, Haru and his friends were forced to part ways. Elie had decided to remain in Elie Village, to continue ruling over her people as was her right. Julia and Let departed for Makai rather than Symphonia, having other matters to attend to as well. Only Musica continued to Symphonia with Haru, as he had promised his friend in the very beginning that he'd help him through it all.

It was not easy to say goodbye to his closest friends, but Haru reluctantly agreed. The world was at peace, and vassals from Mildesta, Makai, Elie Village, Elnadia, and Symphonia were all standing by to keep the war hungry countries from gaining too much power or control. Not much else had changed since what had become known as The Final Battle, and time continued as if it hadn't happened at all.

**x**

"Happy New Year!"

A medium sized pub cheered with the proclamation, raising their drinks and messily slopping the liquid everywhere. "Hey, Haru! You want another drink?" cried the bartended happily, a tall mug in his hands.

Haru looked up, looking tired. "Nah," he said, smiling slightly. Gemma nodded, turning back to his other customers, trying to serve everyone and collect their money at the same time. Haru watched with an unenthused expression as the people he had known since childhood drank themselves silly over the New Year. Sighing, he slipped out from the crowd, thankful Belnika had supplied him with decent peasant clothes, so blending into a crowd was much easier now. Very rarely did he go into the cities – just the villages of his kingdom.

Wordlessly, the king headed to the lake where he had spent much of his time once. Snow was peacefully falling around him, but he took no heed to the cold. He had far too much on his mind to truly care about frozen water falling from the sky, to be frank.

It had been one year since The Final Battles. Tales and fables were told around the world of his heroic battle with Lucia, of how he saved the princess from certain doom and the two lived happily ever after. However, what all these tales and fables left out was the massive amounts of death that the battle came with – the deaths of some of the finest people the world had to offer. No one ever told the children about how Haru nearly lost his life, or how his enemy had suffered as well.

There was no reason to celebrate today.

The New Year was always a highly anticipated part of the year, but the king just simply could not muster up the usual excitement for the holiday. This was his first New Year's as king and he had chosen to be with Gemma and the other villagers instead of throwing another fancy ball.

With a sigh, Haru looked up, realizing his legs had taken him right to the edge of the lake. It was completely clear, with the only lighting coming from the moon above him. "Puun?" asked Plue from the ground. He had followed Haru dutifully around ever since they returned from Elie Village last year, just as upset about leaving behind Elie as the blonde was.

"Yeah, I miss her too," he muttered, sitting down on the log they had spent so much together on. Plue nodded, climbing up next to him. "It's not even like the two of us can just drop in and see each other, either," continued Haru sadly, leaning forward slightly, "Because we both have kingdoms to run and stuff. And, a letter would take a month to get to me, and another month to get back to her, so it isn't as thought we can keep in contact like that either."

The sad truth was that Haru was heartsick. He loved Elie so fiercely, so absolutely, and the two hadn't seen each other once in the past year. Despite the time and distance that was separating them, the blonde could remember every detail of his best friend, from the way her mouth shaped when she laughed to the exact coloring of her hair. Musica was constantly trying to hook him up with some various noblewoman, despite have gone through his own heartbreak, but Haru refused each and every one. Nothing, and no one, could ever replace Elie.

"Puun!"

Surprised at Plue's sudden outburst, Haru looked up. The little Plue Dog was running away from him, towards a figure standing a ways behind them. The person was dressed in a long white dress and an even longer dark blue cloak, concealing most of her body. Plue had little tears running down his face, but he jumped at the exact right moment and landed in their arms, burying his forehead against the persons' chest. "Plue?" asked Haru in confusion at the same time the person said, "Plue!"

Immediately, Haru felt his heart race accelerate. The person laughed, the sound ringing in the blonde's ears like bells. Before he could fully understand why he was reacting this way, the person ran forward, Plue falling out of their arms. In seconds, the person threw her arms around the king, sending Haru staggering back a step. "E-Elie?" asked Haru hopefully.

"Oh God, I've missed you so much!" Elie cried, pulling away to grin at him. In her run, the hood of her cloak had fallen away, revealing her pale, heart shaped face. As usual, her golden brown was framing her face, but it was several inches longer than Haru had remembered. "I have so much to tell you!"

Haru pulled away from her, holding her at arms' length. Nervously, he examined every inch of her body. There were no cuts, bruises, or any sort of injury on what he could see – which was primarily her arms – but a series of scars decorated her body. "Elie," he said softly, a bead of sweat dripping down his cheek, "Elie, is it really you? I'm not dreaming or hallucinating; it's really, honest to God, _you_?"

The brunette blinked in confusion, but a smile came to her face. "I never should have let you leave without me," she said gently, placing a hand on his cheek. Haru leaned into her palm slightly, unaware of the little action. "I regretted it from the moment I watched you drive away."

"How are you here?" asked Haru gently, not trying to sound rude or upset about it – he really just wanted to know. "You have Elie Village to rule and all that. How'd you manage to get the time off to come see me?"

Elie grinned suddenly, laughing. "That's what I needed to tell you first," she said happily, pulling away from him completely and jumping on top of the log, her arms out to keep her balance. "I couldn't do it," she said softly, "Rule an entire country by myself. I'm not my father, or my mother. I don't understand politics, and I don't know how to help the people that need it. I play favorites with people I know, and tend to forget about the ones I don't."

The king watched her in confusion, not sure where she was going with this. "I'm forgetful. And, worst of all, I'm a danger to everyone around me," she added, not facing him, "One misstep and I blow up the whole universe!" At that, she jumped down, gesturing all around her, "I can't rule anything. The people of Elie Village deserve someone who _can_.

"So, I publically passed my throne onto Sieg Hart."

Haru's eyes widened, and his mouth dropped. "You…_what_?" he asked, his voice slowly coming back to him. Elie giggled at his expression, repeating what she said. "And he was OK with that? The man's spent seventeen years watching you so you'd make a good ruler!"

The brunette shrugged. "I talked it over with him first," she explained, placing her hands on her hips. "Haru," said the girl softly, sending shivers' down Haru's spine, "When I was living here, I was _living_. Laughing, having all these fun times with you and Plue and Musica. I actually had a chance to be free from an obligation that I've never even wanted!" Elie threw her arms in the air, a strange expression on her face. "Elie Village will always – _always_ – be my home. But, Symphonia has something entirely different for me. Something that I just can't live without."

"What is it?" asked Haru softly, stepping forward. Elie's expression didn't change, but she carefully stepped forward as well. Neither one spoke again until they were close enough to touch, their foggy breath mingling in the air.

Carefully, Elie wrapped her arms around his neck. "You. I can't live without you, Haru, and I'm tired of trying to convince myself otherwise," she breathed. Haru grinned suddenly, leaning in.  
"Good," he whispered, their lips connecting.

Haru had kissed Princess Celia hundreds of times while she was here, but none of those kisses could even compare to his first kiss with Elie. For the first time in a very long time, Haru felt that gaping hole left in his chest fill up with everything that was Elie – her smell, the way her hair was tickling his forehead slightly, even the way her hands seemed to fit so perfectly on the back of his neck. "I love you," said the blonde gently, reluctantly breaking away.

The brunette grinned, tears at the corners of her eyes. "I love you too."

~x~

Author's Note: THE END! :D! I'm really, really happy about how this turned out! All the information about the story will be in next chapter, so keep in touch!

And now, the special thank you to EVERY single person who has ever reviewed this story, whether that be every chapter, or just one or two. Going in order of who reviewed the least to the ones that reviewed the most:  
**mature-yet-innocent: **Unfortunately, I did not finish the other fights. Boooo. I'm sure that was a major disappointment to you, but I'm just not talented enough to write fight scene's! In the unspecified future, I _will_ write a fight scene and dedicate it to you! Promise! But, despite that lapse in making my reader's happy, I'm really glad that you read _Upside Down_. Thank you, thank you.

**Manyfanatic (and many-fanatic, as I think they're the same person): **Thanks again for the offer of your firstborn child, but I'm still gonna have to decline. xDI'm really happy that you liked my story, even though you said you don't normally like AUs. :D Thank you so much for actually taking the time to read my story despite your preferences!

**Rune Caster: **Even though you only reviewed once, it still meant a lot to me! I love criticism and corrections, and you pointed one out for me! :D Thank you, thank you!

**iamme: **I hope I didn't disappoint! Thank you one hundredfold for reviewing my story! :D

**marajaderox1280: **Whew, is your name hard to type out. xD You're another one that gave me a correction, so a big THANK YOU goes to you! I did, however, do some research: Julius was named after the Latin month of July, which was Julius and not Iulius. Well, maybe it's Iulius in the manga (I dunno, I read Rave online), but I'm just gonna stick with Julius. Thank you, thank you!

**invincible-army: **Yes, it WAS a complicated plot. And, at first, I really wasn't sure how I was going to make it work the way I wanted it to. And then I got a review complimenting my idea, and I was like, "It doesn't matter! It'll work out on its own!" Credit to that goes to you. :D THANK YOU!

**NotoriousRejuvination: **I really missed getting your reviews, but the ones that I did get certainly helped! So, did I prove to you once and for all that I do NOT have a shower/bath addiction? Ahahaha, thanks a lot~!

**The Only Weirdo: **Ah, my lovely Beta. For…several chapters. First off, I'm sorry that I stopped sending them in…I'm rather impatient. And by rather, I mean, VERY. However, I want to sincerely thank you: without your help, my writing ability probably would have stayed at the level it was at the very beginning of the story, rather than improving as it did – all because of you. :D Thank you, thank you.

**the-writing-vampire: **You were there for me in the beginning, and I'm so, so happy that you actually read my stories. (: You're reviews made me laugh out loud, and you did give me some very good ideas. I'm sorry I never got around to revealing what Lucia's master plan was (at least, not with him actually explaining how it was going to be pulled off), but I figured maybe it'd be better for the story if we stuck to keeping the third-person POV on the good guys, not the evil mastermind! Thank you times eight for reading/reviewing!

**The gangsta of love: **You are, by FAR, my most loyal reviewer. I honestly just don't know how I'd ever survive without the knowledge that you'll be reading and reviewing everything I write. I accredit you with this account, actually – without your request that I quit being a selfish jerk, I'd have continued on with writing and taking stuff down. I really, really hope that you'll continue on with reading and reviewing my stuff. :D Thank you, times twenty.

Ah. I do love my reviewers. :D And, of COURSE, a very big thank you to everyone that's read my story:

_**THANK YOU SO, SO, SO, SO MUCH!**_

Expect to see the background information up tomorrow or the day after next!

~Lighteclipse21.0


	22. A Word From Lighteclipse210

Upside Down

~x~

Ahahaha, did I say that I'd have this up the day after the last chapter of _Upside Down_ was posted? Yeah, see, ABOUT THAT…  
Yay for being easily distracted!

Alright, time for the background stuff!

The idea itself was actually born long before I started writing it. Why? Well, I love fantasy stories! In fact, I love all things related to magic, and kings and queens and the feudalistic age.

Originally, it was going to be that Haru had been in royalty for his entire life, and Symphonia was in war with a neighboring country (Raregroove). And then, one night, Haru was going to be stolen away from the castle in the dead of night by Raregroovian spies. Obviously, this IS Haru, so he would have escaped, and found a run-down lab in the middle of nowhere, where he finds this girl that's hiding away from the Raregroove government – Elie. Expectantly, Elie wasn't going to have any memories, so Haru agrees to bring her back to Symphonia to try and help her out.

Well, that sort of never got off. So, instead, I took a different angle. Haru WAS a simple island boy in the first volume, thrust into this insane world that he didn't even know existed. Everything just sort of fell into place from there. (:

Unfortunately, there are a few running jokes I had to leave out. Well, at the very least, there was one joke.

In chapter sixteen, when they were all imprisoned, I really, REALLY wanted to throw in the phrase 'ballroom blitz' (kudos goes to whoever tells me where I got this from) here and there. But, it just wasn't fitting in the way I wanted it to, so…it was left out. ):

Alright! A VERY important topic that, surprisingly, was not questioned – the illness. When I first put it in, I honestly had NO idea what it was going to be. The plague was out, simply because NO one survived it, and Haru would have certainly caught it. But, what is there that affects more woman than males, and something the body will NOT become immune to after the first strike?

Well, I finally narrowed it down to a few things, and what I eventually came up with was Typhoid Fever. Now, I'm pretty sure this was not a particularly picky illness, but, it seemed to fit with the story. Contaminated water was, certainly, not odd in the feudalistic age, right? Also, Typhoid will kill a person between three weeks to a month if not treated properly. So, why did Sakura and Cattleya die?

Well, because I wanted Haru as an orphan, for one thing. As cruel as that sounds, I really did. It made much more sense.

Another reason they died because of the fever was because Cattleya and Haru had NO idea how to treat it. Sakura did, which is why Cattleya lived through her first encounter with it. But, once she was sick with it (not because the disease is airborne, but because it can be spread by flying insects and poor hygiene habits), obviously Cattleya did everything possible to try and fix it. Because of this, she rarely bathed and washed up and everything – cough, bad hygiene, cough – and ended up catching it again.

This still raises the question – why did Haru not get sick too?

Well, despite not having the best hygiene after Cattleya got sick, he was the youngest. Young people tend to have better immune systems than older people, AND he was stronger. His body was much more capable of fighting off an infection or ensuring that the infection never had a chance to spread.

Sigh. It pained me to kill them the way I did…but, what must be done, must be done.

You know what else I wanted to put in the story? Haru's father. Somewhere around the seventeenth chapter, I got it in my head that he'd make an appearance, back from the dead!  
OK, maybe not back from the dead. Just, very much alive.

So, why didn't I? Well, it just…wasn't fitting right. I took the situation in a lot of different angles, but no matter how much I wanted it to fit, having Gale make an appearance to give Haru the chance to go live happily with Elie in Elie Village just wasn't working.

So, instead, I made it so Sieg took over the throne. Actually, I really wanted to write the scene and have you all see it happen, but I decided instead to take a darker approach to the epilogue.

See, it was planned all along that Haru and Elie would eventually get married and live happily ever after. OF COURSE IT WAS. If you thought otherwise, you don't know very well. Hah. But, of course, I had to think of the age I was setting this up in.

Most marriages did NOT happen because of love. Kings and princes were set up with the most suitable match for the throne. Elie and Haru both knew this, so they stayed apart for a while in an attempt to try and do what was best for their country. However, Elie was smart. She loved Haru, and there was no way in Hell she was bedding with ANYONE just because it gave her kingdom an heir. So, she gave her throne to Sieg Hart, a man much better suited for it than she was.

And, hey, what do you know – Sieg has a son already!

See, I KNOW that I claimed Niebel was adopted, but, really? He wasn't. Oooh, no. Sieg is his actual father, but he hadn't really been around the first couple years of his life. Then, Niebel's mother died (cough, Flicka/Hilde, pick which one you want, cough) and he was shipped off to live with his father. Niebel is also unaware that Sieg is his father. I understand that this was probably a bit of information that should have been written in, but, eh. Sieg was more of a side character anyways, and Elie didn't know about it, so…

Well, there ya' go! A LOT of little bits that were (unfortunately) left out of the main story. :D Trust me, it really did pain me to leave it all out. Sigh. But, sacrifaces must be made!

I hope you're not mad that I took so long to update…and that I'm taking even LONGER to update _The Bonds of Three_…If it's any consolation at all, I've been writing through my classes, all little bits and excerpts from the story! Hopefully, they'll make appearances. Not that you'd know, but, well. I'd know!

With lots and lots of love,  
Lighteclipse21.0~


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